When you think of Villain, you no doubt have someone in particular in mind based on where you are from and who you support, as well as what you’ve seen in your time as a rugby fan. The guys at Rugby HQ in Australia have picked theirs, so here you go.
Over the years we’ve seen our fair share of filthy play on the rugby field. A lot of it has been documented here on RD, providing hours of shock factor and for some, entertainment.
Now Sean Maloney and crew have put together their Top 5, all from the Southern Hemisphere, and featuring no less than three South Africans. They’ve given top spot to a vilified front rower from arch rivals New Zealand, but that’s to be expected.
The man in question, Richard Loe, has actually spoken out this week on the recent biting incident that occurred between Argentina and South Africa, saying that Springbok lock Eben Etzebeth deserved to be bitten by Leonardo Senatore.
Senatore was found guilty and banned for nine weeks, however Loe felt that he was provoked and despite flanker Pablo Matera also being cited for an eye-gouge (and later cleared due to a lack of evidence), Loe says that he does not expect more dirty play from Argentina.
“In the case of Senatore, I thought that Eben Etzebeth kind of got what he deserved for slamming his forearm into the Puma No 8’s face. The incident was not in my view a case of the player deliberately setting out to bite – it wasn’t like the time Johan le Roux bit Sean Fitzpatrick’s ear – so I wouldn’t read too much into it,” Loe said.
In the video below we get to see some awful incidents, most of which we have featured at some stage over the years. You can view those, and the Senatore incident, in the Related Posts below.
Who would you name as the all time Top 5 Rugby Villains?
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