Anyone with the slightest mediocum of knowledge of Rugby League will be unsurprised to hear that Terry Newton is no stranger to the Red Hall judiciary.The Bradford Bulls hooker missed the start of his inaugural season at Odsal after receiving a suspension of 11 games, the biggest ban in Super League history, after incidents with Sean Long and Lee Gilmour whilst playing for Wigan and will now miss the next two games for the Bulls after being found guilty of striking St Helens forward Jon Wilkin.
It serves as another example of how the reputation of an extremely talented player can be tarnished by frequent moments of madness in the heat of the battle. Having been vilified by fans at Knowsley Road for his attacks on Long, Gilmour and Wilkin, the former Wigan St Judes amateur is hardly popular in Australia either following an incident with Craig Fitzgibbon in 2003.
Yet despite the misdemeanors, Newton is still held in high regard on the M62 corridor. He made his professional bow as a youngster at Leeds before moving to his hometown club Wigan in 2000. He soon established himself as a first-class hooker and in the eyes of many, was the most talented adopted of the number nine shirt in Super League.
His complicated transfer to Bradford last season despite the lengthy suspension hanging over his head typified the high regard in which he is held and having ousted Ian Henderson, it appears that he has now finally solved the Bulls problematic search for a hooker after the departure of James Lowes.
There are always two arguments when you talk about players with short fuses. One camp argue that "one-man penalty machines" such as this are nothing more than a liability whilst the others put the case forward that such attitudes make players what they are, and they are right.
James Lowes is a classic example. Referee's hated stepping onto the same field as the Bradford hooker. Every decision was met with derision and often he'd earn his side a 10m penalty for dissent. But despite that, he was the best hooker in Britain at the time.
Newton is far from the personality that Lowes was but it's a 'siege mentality' that perhaps brings out the worst, but more often the best in him.
