Footballer notorious for abusing former club official receives new ban

Notorious NRL bad boy John Hopoate has reportedly been banned for life from Wests Tigers functions after abusing a senior football official at a function last week.

Hopoate, 50, is perhaps sadly better known for a series of shocking incidents on and off the pitch than for the football he played during a successful 200-game career.

The massive footballer infamously stuck his finger up the buttocks of three opponents during a match in 2001 – an incident that made headlines around the world for all the wrong reasons.

For the incident he was suspended for 12 games, while during his career he was excluded for 47 games – an unwanted record in the NRL.

No stranger to controversy since the end of his career, Wide World of Sports now reports that Hopoate “abused and threatened” NSWRL chief executive Dave Trodden at the Tigers’ 25th anniversary gala dinner.

The article said Hopoate’s abuse was so severe that Trodden and his family had to leave the ceremony with officials escorting him to his car.

“It was disgraceful and he will not be welcome at any future Tigers duties,” Tigers boss Shane Richardson told Wide World of Sports.

Hopoate’s fury is believed to stem from a decision by the NSWRL to bar him from coaching junior rugby league.

One person who witnessed the incident told WWOS: “It was horrible to watch and everyone could only talk about it afterwards.”

According to reports, the Tigers club has apologised to Trodden for the ugly incident.

The notorious former NRL star has held various positions since retiring in 2005.

He first tried his hand at professional boxing before taking a job as a bouncer at a Kings Cross pub in 2010.

However, later that year he was involved in a fight in which a customer was killed.

Hopoate eventually returned to Manly – the club where he played 181 NRL games – as a part-time coach.

As his family grew, he took part in several other boxing events, with fights against fellow former NRL star Paul Gallen and former world champion Lucas Browne.