Former Scotland rugby international Stuart Hogg pleads guilty to domestic abuse against ex-wife
Disgraced rugby star Stuart Hogg has admitted a five-year campaign of domestic violence against his estranged wife.
The former Scotland captain repeatedly abused the mother of his four children, shouting and swearing at Gillian Hogg, tracking her movements and bombarding her with text messages.
On the day he was due to stand trial, the 32-year-old appeared at Selkirk Sheriff Court, accompanied by his parents Margaret and John, and pleaded guilty to a single charge of breaching domestic abuse laws.
During Mrs Hogg’s years of abuse, he caused her to have a panic attack, berated her for ‘being no fun’ and sent her ‘aggressive and hostile’ messages.
But as he left court, the embarrassed star refused to apologize to his victim – and refused to answer questions from the press.
Hogg, who played 100 times for Scotland, and his wife are now divorcing.
Prosecutor Drew Long said Mrs Hogg became ‘afraid’ of her husband ‘because of his behavior while drinking’.
Former Scotland rugby international Stuart Hogg has pleaded guilty to domestic violence charges against his ex-wife
The father-of-four arrived at Selkirk Sheriff Court with his parents
Stuart Hogg, 32, admitted the charge of domestic abuse on Monday, which occurred over a period of five years
Selkirk Sheriff Court heard Hogg admit sending 200 text messages within hours of the break-up of his marriage (Hogg pictured in September)
He added: ‘She described him as angry and controlling and said that when he drank she ‘would want morning to come as soon as possible so he would sober up and things would stop.’
The court heard that when the Glasgow Warriors full-back joined Exeter Chiefs in Devon in 2019, his behavior ‘deteriorated’ when he went out partying with colleagues.
Mr Long said: ‘He regularly shouted and swore at her, using particularly offensive language and criticizing her for not being nice.
“This would be a response to the fact that she wanted to take care of her children instead of coming to drink with him and his friends.”
When the couple returned to Hawick, Roxburghshire, in May 2023, Hogg began drinking more regularly.
In August that year it emerged he had used an app to track her whereabouts after ‘questioning her whereabouts’ when she dropped off the children.
Shortly afterwards, she and the children moved in with her parents. Mr Long said: ‘She sought advice from a domestic abuse counseling service and no longer felt safe in her home.’
Despite the breakup, she was still inundated with calls and text messages.
In his text bombardment, Hogg alternated between “loving and being aggressive and hostile.”
Mr Long said: ‘Mr Hogg sent his wife a series of messages which were aggressive in tone and which caused her to have a panic attack.
‘Since the break-up, there have been days when Mr Hogg has sent more than 200 text messages in the space of a few hours, despite being asked to leave Mrs Hogg alone.’
The rugby player admitted a charge of domestic abuse under section one of the Domestic Abuse Scotland Act in relation to ex-wife Gillian
Today was the first of a planned three-day trial on the charges
In February this year, Hogg entered the family home, the court was told, and swore at his wife in front of his children while being ‘belligerent about his right to be in the property’.
Mr Long added: ‘In response, Mrs Hogg and the children hid in one of the children’s rooms.’
Hogg was later arrested and ordered not to contact his wife, but did so again. Angela Gray QC, defending, said that taken in isolation it would have been ‘unlikely’ that the incidents would have exceeded the threshold required to reach criminal courts.
But she said: ‘Mr Hogg accepts that these incidents in themselves fell short of what is expected as a husband.’
The domestic violence charge Hogg admitted said he repeatedly shouted, swore and acted aggressively, followed her movements, sent her messages of an alarming and disturbing nature, contacted her and approached her when prohibited from doing so.
Following his guilty plea, Sheriff Peter Paterson told Hogg to return to court on December 5 for sentencing.
Hogg, who toured three times with the British and Irish Lions, shocked rugby fans when he unexpectedly retired last summer.
He was subsequently appointed MBE in the 2024 New Year Honors list for services to sport.
He later returned to the game with French side Montpellier.
Hogg is now expecting a child with new girlfriend Leonna Mayor, 34, a former jockey and TV presenter.
Charlotte Woodward, from the National Center for Domestic Violence, said: ‘Athletes are in a position of influence and there needs to be a clear message from employers that this behavior has consequences.
‘In many other professions, offenders would face disciplinary action and this should be no different in sport.’
A Montpellier spokesman said: ‘The club has no further comment to make at this time.’