A rugby league player has unveiled his freshly inked tattoos after he was warned that the previous words he had etched on his thighs were so offensive he could be banned from the sport.
Joshua Taylor-Myles, a 23-year-old hooker for the Aquinas Colts in Sydney’s south-west, sparked uproar after it was revealed he had ‘eat sh** fa***t’ and ‘snort lines and f***’ inked on his quadriceps.
About a fortnight after Daily Mail Australia unveiled Mr Taylor-Myles’ identity, the athlete confirmed on Sunday evening that he had finally covered up his notorious tats during a birthday trip to Bali.
Mr Taylor-Myles posted a photo of himself grinning outside Bali’s Finns beach club with his shorts hitched-up to show off a fresh growling bear and Viking motif covering his upper legs.
‘Gone but not forgotten,’ he captioned the image.
Two Balinese artists inked the elaborate illustrations over the top of his two tats on Saturday night.
It comes less than two weeks after the father-of-one was given an ultimatum: either cover up the offensive ink or risk being banned from any NSWRL competition.
A NSWRL spokesperson previously told Daily Mail Australia the father-of-one had been given an official warning and asked to cover up the tattoos.
Joshua Taylor-Myles is seen showing off his the results of his tattoo coverup outside the Finns beach club in Bali
Mr Taylor-Myles (pictured) was told to cover up the ink – which said ‘eat s***t fa***t’ and ‘snort lines and f***’ – or risk being booted from NSW Rugby League
‘The NSWRL and Cronulla JRL are committed to providing a safe, fun and inclusive environment for all people, including those of diverse sexualities and genders. Being an inclusive sport not only reflects our core values, it also reflects the diversity of our local communities,’ the spokesperson said.
The tattoos sparked uproar after Taylor-Myles was selected to play in the NSWRL Luke Lewis Cup and an image of his tats went viral on social media.
The Aquinas Colts is a Cronulla feeder club. It’s understood Cronulla officials were only made aware of the highly offensive tattoos when a photo of them circulated on social media.
At least two images of Taylor-Myles’ legs were wiped from the club’s social media pages as commentators blasted the tattoos as ‘disgusting’ and social media users called for the athlete to laser them off.
Long-standing club members questioned how the scandal has been handled.
‘He should get the boot from the club if he refuses to cover those tattoos,’ one former club member told Daily Mail Australia.
‘I get it, we all make mistakes, but there is hardly a reasonable excuse as to why you would ever get such offensive words inked to your body.
‘He wouldn’t be playing if I was still at the club.’
Taylor-Myles shared photos from the process of getting the tattoos covered on Saturday
News Corp commentator Buzz Rothfield said the tattoos were ‘just vile’.
‘They are so offensive. It is so homophobic. (The club) didn’t realise. They didn’t check the leg tattoos of every player they pick in rep sides but when a photo was put up on social media of the player, they recognised it and sent it to the New South Wales Rugby League and good on Dave Trodden,’ he said.
Rothfield said Mr Trodden, the NSWRL CEO, had ‘jumped on it straight away’.
‘He said we have zero tolerance for any form of bullying, harassment or vilification towards people with diverse sexualities and genders,’ he continued.
‘They’ve said to this bloke, “Cover them up with tape or you will not play in a New South Wales Rugby League sanctioned competition ever again”. I applaud them for coming down so hard on his rubbish.
‘He plays in a club where there are a lot of young women and men who participate for the enjoyment, for the camaraderie and it’s just so out of order.’
