Friday 17 August 2018 10:53, UK
England fly-half Danny Cipriani has apologised after pleading guilty to common assault and resisting arrest, saying he is "mortified".
Cipriani was fined £2,000 for the two charges, reduced from five, at Jersey Magistrates' Court on Thursday, having been arrested following an incident at a Jersey nightclub in the early hours of Wednesday morning.
He was also ordered to pay £250 compensation to a female police officer, who suffered bruising to her neck in the incident at the Royal Yacht Hotel in St Helier.
The 30-year-old said he was "grateful" to his club side Gloucester, who pledged their full support to the player following the incident - which happened while on a team night out.
"I want to start with a heartfelt apology," Cipriani said on Twitter. "To my club, team-mates, supporters and most importantly the police. They have a tough and vital job and I'm mortified that, earlier this week, I acted in a way that I hugely regret.
"I am truly sorry."
Cipriani expressed his desire to make it known Magistrate Sarah Fitz publicly stated that "it was a minor incident" and "a fine is more than sufficient".
"I was wrong to argue with a bouncer, and pull on his camera tie," Cipriani added. "I was also wrong to resist arrest. This is why I pleaded guilty to these two charges and all other charges were dropped by the prosecution.
"I was initially confused as to why I was being arrested by three officers. This led me to react in the wrong manner for a matter of seconds, seeking to hold off the police officers rather than accepting their decision.
"It goes without saying, given the words of the Magistrate, that I didn't strike anyone or initiate aggression in any way.
"I would like to publicly thank the Magistrate and the police and, once again, apologise both to them and to the public."
Cipriani earned his first England recall in almost 10 years when he started in the win over South Africa in June.
England head coach Eddie Jones told Sky Sports News back in May: "If he's on the front page for any other reason (than rugby), he won't be with us."
But Sky Sports' rugby expert Stuart Barnes said Cipriani has to be named in England's squad for their upcoming autumn Tests.
Barnes, a former fly-half, said: "If that had been a Gloucester reserve fly-half, or a flanker, that story would not even have made the newspapers anywhere else."
