Twitter tirades: When sportsmen lose their cool

Quade Cooper is the latest sportsman to lose his cool on Twitter. Photo / Getty

Quade Cooper's fouled mouth rant on social media is not the first time he or other sportsmen have lost the plot on Twitter.

The Herald's Chris Rattue criticised Cooper for his performance after the Wallabies 34-9 win over Argentina and Cooper tweeted after the game: "Invite me to you're next team discussion then ask me how much I give a f*** about your team selection? Zero f***s given."

The tweet was deleted a few hours later and Cooper apologised.

He used Twitter in 2012 to criticise former Wallabies head coach Robbie Deans and the Australian Rugby Union - calling it a "toxic environment."

The Herald looks at five other Twitter rants from sport that have left tweeters in hot water.

1. Paul Gallen

Cronulla's captain was tweeting from Hawaii where he was holidaying in October after the 2014 NRL campaign. The Sharks chief executive Steve Noyce had just been sacked in a new management structure which really upset Gallen.

He wrote: "Steve Noice [sic] actually cared about players from cronulla's feelings. Couldn't say that about any other c*** from Nrl." Gallen apologised, calling it "unacceptable" and he was fined A$50,000 and banned from playing for Australia during 2015.

2. David Warner

The Australian opener is no stranger to controversy and one article in the Sydney Telegraph wound him up - big time. The article criticised the IPL competition that Warner was playing in with the Delhi Daredevils.

He was involved in an angry exchange with two News Limited journalists Robert Craddock and Malcolm Conn - firing insults at them including "absolute goose", "old fart", "jealous prick" and the old classic "wannabe cricketer." Warner's war of words saw him fined A$5,570.

3. Kevin Pietersen

It seems a long time ago that KP was considered for England but he's never been too far away from the headlines. He didn't take his first exclusion from international cricket too well.

Pietersen was dropped from England's 50 over and T20 international squads in 2010 and his response on Twitter was: "Yep... Done for rest of summer!! Man of the World Cup T20 and dropped from the T20 side too... It's a f*** up!! Surrey have signed me for l...."

The tweets cuts off there, as I think everyone does whenever he opens his mouth nowadays. He was fined an undisclosed sum for his tirade.

4. Sonny Bill Williams

Sonny Bill faced a defamation case in 2013 for his tweet after Anthony Mundine's boxing bout with Daniel Geale. He was supporting Mundine and he was unhappy with the judges decision as Geale won the fight. He wrote: "Hanging out with @Anthony-Mundine celebrating a victory. We don't pay attention to corrupt judges!!"

He later tweeted apologising for his comments: "Sorry about the tweet last night. Emotions were running high just very disappointed for my brother and that's how I saw the fight." "No disrespect meant to Geale he's a great champion-fighter and it was a great night."

5. Peter Odemwingie

Nigerian striker Peter Odemwingie was playing for West Bromwich Albion in 2013 in the English Premier League when he used Twitter to lash out at his employers. He was unhappy with his role at the club and wrote a series of angry tweets.

He wrote: "Keeping me on the bench now is worst than what they did on the 31st. New advisers told me to take say its all my fault cos its better for me."

He added: "If they like they shouldn't even give me 10 mins to play. Threatening to ruin my career? Career I closed already last summer? No harm to me," and "Want to treat me like an average player. The abuse and praise I get is it average? So get some extra from me too."

Odemwingie had tried to force a transfer a few months earlier when he turned up at Queens Park Rangers without the club's permission. He was dealt with "internally" and perhaps it's not surprising that he moved to Cardiff City the following season.