Sin Bin

The spectator is caught on camera tripping a player © Twitter

Enlarge

A parent who tripped up an Under-16s rugby player during a match in Hertfordshire - and who attracted widespread opprobrium as a result - has been handed a two-year touchline ban by the Rugby Football Union.

"The person involved has been banned from standing on the touchline for two years," an RFU source said. "One year of the ban is suspended so he can return to watch games in a year, depending on good behaviour."

Fullerians, whose son the parent was playing for, banned the man for six matches and said the act was "out of character" and that the man had apologised to all concerned.

But the growing concern over spectator behaviour at all levels, allied to the coverage the incident attracted, meant the RFU was always likely to cme down heavily on the individual concerned.