The worst rugby bad boys of 2016 and the shocking acts of violence that truly sickened us all

The worst rugby bad boys of 2016 and the shocking acts of violence that sickened us all. Rugby correspondent Simon Thomas looks back on these and players who picked up bans during a highly eventful 12 months.

Aaron Smith was suspended for one week in October for entering a toilet cubicle with a woman at Christchurch Airport. He missed the Rugby Championship match against South Africa in Durban.

Tom Youngs was suspended for one week in January for striking Stade Francais prop Rabah Slimani during a match in Paris.

Tim Swinson was yellow carded by referee Romain Poite for punching Northampton hooker Mike Haywood in January. He was suspended for one week.

Phil Burleigh was banned for one week for striking Stade Francais lock Pascal Pape.

Jack Condy was red carded for an off-the-ball challenge during an Anglo-Welsh Cup clash with the Dragons at Rodney Parade in November. Condi was sidelined for a week.

Cyril Baille was suspended for one week for pulling Dario Chistolini out of a ruck by the neck.

Paul Willemse was sent off last weekend for kicking Rory Kockott. He was banned for one week.

Keith Earls was banned for two weeks after his tackle on Fraser Brown. Anthony Foley died in October. He was the coach of Munster. It was their first match since the tragic death of their coach Anthony. Foley.

Joe Launchbury was banned for two weeks for kicking Fiji centre Asaeli Tikoirotuma. He will miss the November Tests against Argentina and Australia.

Edinburgh lock Fraser McKenzie was given a two-week ban for charging into rucks. Munster's Jack O'Donoghue was stretchered off after being knocked out in the September incident.

Kieran Brookes was banned for two weeks after he charged into a ruck without using his arms in Northampton's defeat to Newcastle.

Randall Morrison was sent off during a Challenge Cup match at The Stoop last week. He was shown a red card for a high tackle on Harlequins and England wing Marland Yarde.

Nans Ducuing was sent off last weekend for an aerial collision with Olly Woodburn. He was banned for two weeks. Rob Baxter felt uncomfortable about it.

Owen Farrell was banned for two weeks for a dangerous tackle on Dan Robson in April's Champions Cup semi-final.

Simon McIntyre was banned for two weeks for kicking Sarries lock Maro Itoje during the Euro semi-final at the Madejski Stadium.

Sam Betty was sent off and suspended for two weeks after a couple of hooks during the Challenge Cup encounter with the Dragons at Rodney Parade last weekend.

James Davies was banned for three weeks for using abusive language and making an obscene gesture during the Champions Cup clash in Toulon. Davies won a silver medal at the Rio Olympics.

Elliot Daly was sent off against Argentina and given a three-week suspension. Elliot Daly is the fifth England player to be sent-off in rugby.

Fergus McFadden was suspended for three weeks for a dangerous tackle on Damien Hoyland at the RDS in April.

The mass brawl between Grenoble and Brive in September was a real belter. Seven players were suspended for between one and three weeks and the clubs were fined €20,000. Brier fly-half Matthieu Ugalde was also banned.

Davit Kubriashvili was punished for charging into a ruck during Montpellier's first Champions Cup match with Castres.

Jules Plisson was suspended for three weeks for a shoulder charge on David Smith in Stade Francais’ 29-25 home win over Castres.

Jason Emery was sent off in April for a dangerous tackle on Willie le Roux.

James Cronin has been banned for four weeks for stamping on Jamison Gibson-Park during a Pro12 Irish derby in October.

Joe Marler has been banned for four weeks this year. Samson Lee was also banned. He was cited for kicking Grenoble hooker Arnaud Héguy in April.

Jerome Schuster was suspended for five weeks for a dangerous tackle during a Top 14 game against Pau in September.

Sergio Parisse has been suspended twice in the last year. He was suspended for a dangerous tackle on Gilian Galan in September and for hitting an opponent with his foot in November.

Dylan Hartley was banned for six weeks for hitting Sean O'Brien in the head with a swinging arm from behind. He was playing for Northampton against Leinster in Champions Cup earlier this month.

George Robson was banned for six weeks after grabbing an opponent's testicles. He was cited following an incident involving Yorkshire Carnegie No 8 Ollie Stedman during a Championship match last month.

Anton Peikrishvili was sent off for biting Rob McCusker in November. Anton Peikkrish vili has been out of action for six weeks.

Enrique Pieretto was sent off during last month's England-Argentina match at Twickenham. He was banned for seven weeks.

Luke Marshall has been involved in two "gouging" incidents this year. Etienne Falgoux was banned for seven weeks last weekend.

George Earle was sent off for making contact with the eye area of Bath flanker Tom Ellis last week. Earles pleaded not guilty and was given a long ban.

Paul Gabrillagues was banned for eight weeks for gouging Dan Cole. Stade Francais had two players banned in January for a combined total of 23 weeks.

Oliviero Fabiani was sent off for biting Quinn Roux during the Champions Cup match in Parma. He was banned for nine weeks.

Tomas Francis has been banned for 10 weeks in total. He was banned in March for eight weeks and two weeks for kicking out at a ruck during Exeter's win over Harlequins.

Pascal Papé was banned for 10 weeks for kneeing Jamie Heaslip in the back during the Six Nations in Dublin in February. He was left with three fractured vertebrae as a result of the incident. Pape received a warning this month for an exaggerated fall after being struck by Edinburgh’s red-carded Phil Burleigh.

Mat Luamanu has been banned for three times this season. He was banned in September for charging, in November for a dangerous tackle and now for another three weeks for "charging dangerously" into an opponent.

Viktor Kolelishvili was banned for 14 weeks for pushing referee Wayne Barnes during a Champions Cup clash with the Ospreys in January.

Matthieu Ugalde was banned for 14 weeks for an eye gouge on Armand Battle.

Laurent Sempere was found guilty of gouging Marcos Ayerza during the Stade Francais-Leicester game in January. He was sentenced to 15 weeks in prison.

Josaia Raisuqe was suspended for 15 weeks at a disciplinary hearing in Paris. Raisuqes was sent off for making contact with the eye area of Munster captain CJ Stander during a Champions Cup game in January of this year.

Chris Ashton has been suspended twice this year. He was banned for 10 weeks in January for making contact with Luke Marshall and 13 weeks for biting Northampton prop Alex Waller in September.

Bruno Andres Doglioli was banned for three years for hitting a female referee Maria Beatrice Benvenuti.

The worst rugby bad boys of 2016 were Cipriano Martinez and Juan Masi. Martinez was banned for 99 years and the Buenos Aires Rugby Union suspended him for 29 years.

Pablo De La Plata was one of nine players banned for life after a mass brawl in an Argentine club match in June. Huazihul San Juan and Personal Bank Mendoza players were involved in the fight.