James Graham had an NRL grand final to forget.
Photo: Getty Images
THE LOWDOWN: James Graham's biting incident marred the NRL's biggest day, while David Nalbandian and Chris Judd both produced shockers...
James Graham (Canterbury Bulldogs)
In the heat of the battle during this year's NRL grand final, English prop Graham decided to celebrate Sam Perrett's try by chomping on Storm fullback Billy Slater's ear. The unedifying moment, when the scores were still locked at 4-4, was not Graham's only brain fade though. He fronted the judiciary after the event and went on to claim that, despite all the overwhelming evidence to the contrary, including the fact that Slater's ear was bleeding, he never committed the act. He even brought his dentist along to help plead his case. His two brain fades are likely to cost the Bulldogs dearly next season as he will sit out the first 12 games.
David Nalbandian
Nalbandian got himself disqualified from the Queen's Club final in London after kicking an advertising board and injuring a linesman. The fiery Argentine was leading Croatia's Marin Cilic by a set and was 3-4 in the second when he lashed out at the hoarding surrounding the linesman's chair. The official's shin was badly cut and tournament bosses were forced to end the match, handing the title to Cilic. Nalbandian's apology after the event left a bit to be desired, blaming the ATP for his behaviour, and also blaming onerous scheduling for his woes. "Sometimes you get very frustrated on court. Sometimes … we feel so much pressure from the ATP playing so many tournaments ... There are a lot of rules and sometimes [the ATP] don't do anything. The rule book is very big and I can tell you the ATP do a lot to the players and nothing happens," he said to raucous boos.
Watch Nalbandian's outburst:
Chris Judd (Carlton)
The Carlton star ensured he will be remembered as the dirtiest Brownlow Medal winner since Tony Liberatore with yet another brain snap this year. In a match against North Melbourne, Judd grabbed the arm of Leigh Adams, who was already pinned face down by another player, and twisted to the point where his shoulder popped and he was forced from the ground in pain. Adams was never the same after the incident and was eventually booked in for surgery. Judd somehow escaped with just a three-week ban. With this act, Judd added to his previous offences including elbowing Matthew Pavlich in the face and eye-gouging Michael Rischitelli in 2009.
Watch the incident here:
Lyall Gorman (A-League)
As if the A-League grand final could have been any more farcical after a dubious penalty was awarded in the seventh minute of stoppage time to gift Brisbane Roar a title win, things got even more bizarre at the presentation ceremony, where Thomas Broich was awarded the Joe Marston Medal despite Perth Glory defender Jacob Burns clearly being the best player on the ground. A-League CEO Gorman was forced to present Burns with the medal in the bowels of Suncorp Stadium during the press conference after blaming an administrative error for the mistake.
Amare Stoudemire (New York Knicks)
After losing game two to the Miami Heat in the Eastern Conference playoffs, Stoudemire decided to take his frustrations out on a glass fire extinguisher case. The result? Doctors and paramedics called to the dressing room to treat a cut on his left hand before he left the arena with his arm in a sling and a bulky wrap. He missed game three of the series, which the Knicks eventually lost 4-1 as the Heat went all the way to win the NBA title.
Robbie Farah (Wests Tigers)
Finding himself on the same side of the fence as Ray Hadley in an argument on bullying and intimidation should have raised a warning flag for Robbie Farah. Instead the Wests Tigers hooker jumped in boots and all to support The Daily Telegraph's war on Twitter trolls. Farah claimed he had been the victim of some nasty abuse on Twitter after his mother passed away earlier this year. He garnered much sympathy for a couple of hours until it was later discovered that Farah himself had tweeted that Prime Minister Julia Gillard should have been given a noose as a present for her 50th birthday. Sympathy dried up pretty quickly after that.
Next up: Heroes
Follow BigPond Sport on Twitter: @bigpondsport
Note: YouTube content is NOT unmetered and is potentially subject to download charges.
The views in this article are those of the author and not necessarily those of BigPond Sport.