Bradford Bulls’ George Flanagan handed 10-game ban for ‘testicle attack’

The hooker has been found guilty for a second time for a charge of this nature after being banned for eight games in 2019

Jack Rathborn
Wednesday 31 March 2021 09:27 BST
Comments
George Flanagan has been suspended for 10 matches
George Flanagan has been suspended for 10 matches

Your support helps us to tell the story

From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.

At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.

The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.

Your support makes all the difference.

George Flanagan has been suspended for 10 matches and fined £250 after being found guilty of “attacking an opponent’s testicles”.

The punishment was handed out with knowledge that it is the second time in 18 months that the Bradford Bulls hooker has been guilty of foul play

The Rugby Football League confirmed the news surrounding the incident that occurred in the 32nd minute of Bulls’ Challenge Cup second-round loss to Featherstone Rovers on 21 March.

The ban has been escalated from eight games for his first infringement of this nature back in August 2019, with Flanagan pleading not guilty to the charge.

He was handed a Grade F charge, which is the most serious grading open to the Rugby Football League’s match review panel, with eight matches the minimum ban.

Read more:

Rugby league has had a number of unsavoury on-field incidents over the years.

Sam Burgess, who represented England in both rugby league and union and played in Australia’s National Rugby League, was banned for two weeks for a “squirrel tackle” in which he grabbed the testicles of opponent Will Chambers during a match in 2013.

Former NRL player John Hopoate was banned in 2001 and sacked by his club for inserting his fingers into an opposing player’s anus on more than one occasion.

Join our commenting forum

Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies

Comments

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in