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Scottish former rugby captain Stuart Hogg has pleaded guilty to a domestic abuse charge against his estranged wife. Appearing at the Selkirk Sheriff Court, he admitted shouting, swearing, and acting in an abusive manner towards Gillian Hogg. Stuart also admitted repeatedly tracking Gillian’s movements and sending messages of an alarming and distressing nature. The court heard that this former Hawick and Glasgow Warriors player, who was capped 100 times for Scotland, once sent more than 200 messages in a couple of hours. The sentencing has been deferred until 5 December for background reports.
Over a five-year period, up to August of this year, Stuart engaged in courses of conduct that caused fear and alarm to his wife. The court heard how the 32-year-old regularly shouted and swore at Gillian while they lived in Hawick and Glasgow, as well as when they lived in Exeter while he played for Exeter Chiefs. At one point, it caused Gillian to have a panic attack, and she eventually took advice from domestic abuse services. The charge also involved Stuart monitoring his wife’s movements through the Find My Phone app after they had split up in 2023. He was sending her sometimes hundreds of text messages in the space of a few hours.
Sheriff Peter Paterson allowed Stuart bail until 5 December to await reports, including a restriction of liberty assessment. The fullback retired from rugby union before last year’s World Cup, having amassed a century of senior caps and been involved in three British and Irish Lions tours. He remains one of Scotland’s all-time leading try-scorers and was awarded an MBE in the 2024 New Year honours list for services to rugby union. He came out of retirement in the summer to sign a two-year contract with Montpellier, where he plays currently.
Stuart is not the first rugby union player to face domestic abuse charges. Many players have faced charges in the past, which led to their suspension. The culture of rugby union surrounding such behavious has been under scrutiny over recent years, with the Rugby Football Union (RFU) attempting to take steps to eliminate domestic abuse from the sport. It can be expected that there will consequences for Hogg given his guilty plea
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