Retiring Joe Marler got rugby ban for grabbing rival's testicles before Haka controversy

Rugby ace was conjuring controversy long before his comments on the Haka enraged fans this week.

The prop announced on Sunday that he was , less than 24 hours after the Red Rose lost 24-22 at home to the All Blacks. Marler, 34, wasn't named as part of Steve Borthwick's matchday squad but made his own contribution this week, stoking the flames when he said the

The 95-cap veteran later , suggesting he'd been educated and was "just having a bit of fun." However, it's not the first time Marler's idea of entertainment at the opposition's expense has landed him in hot water.

It was during the 2020 that he copped a 10-week ban for getting too hands-on in a fourth-round clash against at Twickenham (now the Allianz Stadium). More specifically, Marler was punished for groping Wales captain Alun Wyn Jones by the testicles as a team-wide scrap unfolded in the eighth minute of the fixture.

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Commentators laughed off the incident - which was missed by official at the time - before an independent disciplinary committee took a sterner view of the matter. Wayne Pivac, Wales' head coach at the time, responded by saying there was "no place for that in the game," while Jones called Marler a "good bloke" but called for officials to take action.

England were leading 7-0 at the time of the incident and went on to win a tense encounter 33-30 on home soil. Manu Tuilagi was sent off in that fixture for a dangerous tackle on George North, though that only earned him a four-week ban.

That contrast between punishments perhaps puts into context the severity of his actions – even though Marler may not see it that way. And it's that same lack of awareness – or maybe a willingness to act out in pursuit of a quick thrill – that sums up his previous comments regarding New Zealand's sacred pre-game call to arms.

The Harlequins front-rower toured with Jones – the most capped rugby player of all time – as part of the British and Irish Lions squad that travelled to New Zealand in 2017. However, it appears the two former team-mates looked differently upon the whole incident, which serves as another example of Marler's instincts getting the better of him.

Marler had previously been fined £20,000 and banned for two matches for calling ex-Wales prop Samson Lee – a member of the Traveller community – . He was again suspended for two weeks in December 2022 after he made two .

It was following that latter incident Marler revealed he's been taken to task by his wife, Daisy, and said on The Joe Marler Show: "At what point do you go, 'yeah, you can say sorry, mate, but just stop f*****g doing it?' I guess this is the point, is it?"

Ex-New Zealand captain and All Blacks icon Tana Umaga suggested Marler's comments disrespecting the Haka further. The 2019 Rugby World Cup runner-up has enjoyed a long list of highlights for, though his signing off in international colours was perhaps far from how he might have envisioned.

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