Rugby star gets brutally pranked like Steven Gerrard by kid on way to the sin bin

Canberra Raiders player Jack Wighton was brutally pranked by a kid just like Steven Gerrard famously was as he walked down the tunnel after a sin-bin in an NRL clash

19:44, 26 Mar 2023Updated 19:45, 26 Mar 2023

[Jack Wighton was pranked by a kid as he trudged down the tunnel on Sunday]

Jack Wighton was pranked by a kid as he trudged down the tunnel on Sunday

An NRL rugby player was hilariously pranked just like Steven Gerrard as he trudged off the pitch after being banished to the sin-bin.

Canberra Raiders star Jack Wighton's misery was quickly compounded after seeing yellow for a dangerous hit in a 24-14 defeat to Newcastle Knights on Sunday.

Wighton fell for the timeless prank from a young fan when heading for the tunnel in the 48th minute of the clash following foul play on Knights halfback Jackson Hastings. The youngster held out his hand - lulling Wighton into a high-five - before withdrawing it just as the Australian stand-off approached him.

The "brutal" moment did not go unnoticed by rugby league supporters on social media, as one claimed Wighton was 'done dirty' by the fan, while another joked that it was "the greatest thing I have ever seen."

And the old trick draws obvious similarities with the famous prank that caught out Liverpool legend Gerrard before a Premier League match against Chelsea.

Do you remember Steven Gerrard being pranked in the tunnel? Let us know in the comments below

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In February 2006, Chelsea fan Jake Nickless took full advantage of the limelight as a mascot as he became a cult hero with football fans for the audacious prank on the midfielder.

Nickless made national headlines when he snubbed a handshake with Gerrard - an incident that still gets replayed today with over one million views on Sky's Retro Youtube channel.

John Terry congratulated the kid with a pat on the back, while his Chelsea teammates Claude Makelele and Michael Essien were left in stitches by the bold move.

[Gerrard was pranked in epic style by a young Chelsea fan 17 years ago]

Gerrard was pranked in epic style by a young Chelsea fan 17 years ago

"I remember my dad putting me up to it," Nickless later recalled in an interview with SPORTbible.

"I kept saying I wasn't going to do it and I think he eventually believed it, so he stopped. But in the moment I was just excited and thought why not.

"I knew the game was also on TV and loads of people were watching, so I just provided a bit of entertainment."

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