Jamie Durbin also hurled vile racist abuse at a man in a cemetery
11:11, 31 Jul 2025Updated 11:46, 31 Jul 2025
Jamie Durbin(Image: Cavendish Press (Manchester) Ltd)
A former professional rugby league player was told in court by a judge to ‘grow up’ as he was banned from going to his mum’s house for two years under the terms of a restraining order.
Jamie Durbin, 40, who has played for Warrington Wolves, Widnes Vikings and Leigh Centurions, was described by his solicitor as ‘a chronic alcoholic’.
A court heard he was arrested after he kept turning up at his mother’s home drunk and arguing with her. During one incident, he was taken away from the house and warned not to return by police – only for him to turn up again drunk. The court heard he screamed and banged on the doors and windows, demanding to be let in.
In a separate incident whilst visiting his father’s grave, Durbin hurled vile racist abuse at a Saudi Arabian man, calling him ‘Osama Bin Laden’ and a ‘f****** bomber’, a prosecutor said.
The court heard he has previously been jailed for a drunken attack on an unnamed relative.
At Warrington magistrates court Durbin, from Dunsford in Widnes, Cheshire, pleaded guilty to harassment and racially-aggravated harassment. He was sentenced to 16 weeks in prison, suspended for 12 months, and slapped with the restraining order. Durbin was further ordered to complete 25 days of rehabilitation activity.
A judge suspended a jail sentence(Image: Cavendish Press (Manchester) Ltd)
During the hearing, Durbin irritated District Judge Jack McGarva by wearing shorts to court and complaining of the weather being ‘roasting.’ He then failed switch his mobile phone to silent, causing it to blare out the ‘Hello Moto’ ringtone five times.
The judge told him: ”Your mum is the person who will always look to support you no matter how low you go. She wanted to take pity on you and it just spiralled out of control. I am quite sure she had no option but to call the police.
“You are assessed as posing a high risk to her. At 40 you should have grown out of it. You have a terrible record for this sort of behaviour. A lot of the time you say you have been drunk or have been drinking, that is not an excuse.
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“The only person to blame is you. You are the person who chose to drink and you know what you are like when you drink. It is not an excuse. You cannot go on like this.
“For your mum, you are not to enter her road for two years. I am not saying that you cannot speak to her, but you are not to go to her address.”
Diana Przemecka, prosecuting, said: “On May 21, the defendant turned up at his mother’s address intoxicated. She was initially willing to allow him to sleep off the drink.
”However, he became increasingly unpredictable and erratic in his behaviour, so she felt she had to call the police. He was removed by police and warned about returning to the property – however, he returned later even more intoxicated, shouting and banging on the window and door, shouting to be let in.”
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Defence solicitor Mark Lever said: “My colleague and I have been dealing with Jamie Durbin for many years. There is a history of alcohol consumption and he is a chronic alcoholic. There have been difficulties with his mother and his late father who died last year but his mother has always maintained contact with him.
“The problem only arises when he turns up at the house in a drunken state, argues with her and shouts and screams. He works on a part-time basis for a tree surgeon. He does travel around the country. He does not just rely on benefits. He does work.”
Durbin started playing rugby at amateur club Halton Farnworth Hornets while on a junior contract to Super League team Warrington Wolves, where he made his debut in 2003. During his 12-year career as a professional, he also played for Widnes Vikings in National League One and Leigh Centurions in the Championship, before moving on to Championship and then League One team North Wales Crusaders in 2009, where he finished in 2015.
He played for England schoolboys international in rugby union and he was top try scorer at his first season at Leigh Centurions. He was banned from playing for two years in 2006 while at Widnes Vikings for taking anabolic steroids.