A shamed Scotland rugby star has escaped a jail term after being convicted of abusing his girlfriend.
Rufus McLean subjected his 21-year-old partner to a two-year ordeal which included controlling where she went, the clothing she wore and who she met.
McLean left his girlfriend with a burst lip and black eye after pushing her off him during one incident.
The 23-year-old, who was sacked by his Glasgow Warriors club after pleading guilty in January, appeared for sentencing at Edinburgh Sheriff Court on Thursday.
McLean, who has three Scottish international caps, was told his offences meant the “threshold for a custodial sentence had been crossed”.
But Sheriff Matthew Auchincloss said there were alternatives to custody available and imposed 120 hours of community service.
He also slapped McLean with a non-harassment order banning him from approaching or contacting his ex-partner for ten years.
McLean had admitted demanding passwords to her social media accounts and keeping a tracker device running on her phone.
The court previously heard how the couple had been in an “on-off” relationship for four years and were together “properly” for just over two years between April 2019 and May 2021.
She had described McLean as “emotionally abusive and controlling”.
On Wednesday Sheriff Matthew Auchincloss said he accepted McLean didn’t intend to “cause harm”.
He added: “But given the extended period of time, and the nature of the behaviour, you were reckless about whether harm would have been caused.”
The sheriff said McLean had caused “significant harm to his former partner”, but was a first offender and a young person who has the “capacity to change”.
Sheriff Auchincloss said he recognised the “dynamics” of the couple’s relationship “may have been difficult” and both had faced “significant challenges”.
He added: “You have shown remorse and shame and recognise the hurt and fear you caused your ex-partner.”
McLean wasn’t placed in the Caledonian men’s programme, which tries to address domestic offending, as he had already carried out “equivalent” counselling work making it unnecessary, the sheriff added.
Earlier defence agent Iain Smith said his client had “matured significantly”, adding: “He is fully accountable, he’s remorseful, he has a high degree of insight, and regrets what happened.”
In January the court was told McLean’s partner was on holiday with friends in Spain in 2019 when he “took exception” to what she was wearing after seeing a social media post.
He messaged her to say she looked like a “sl*g” and told her to change clothes. But she refused and went out. McLean then continued to message her, and her friends, and told her to leave the club.
In January 2021, the couple were at McLean’s Glasgow flat when she woke him up to talk. McLean pushed her off him, causing her lip to be burst and a black eye to appear. She was left “frightened” by the incident and took photos of her injuries to show her mum.
In March 2020, the pair were in Edinburgh when McLean spotted a photo on her Instagram feed of her with a man she had previously dated.
The court heard McLean said, “What the f**k is this?” and became “irate”. He pushed her on the chest and she fell. Police were alerted and she told officers McLean would often message her friends to find out where she was and demanded she turn on the “location services” function on her phone so he could check up on her.
Boston-born McLean, an ex-pupil of boarding school Merchiston Castle in Edinburgh – where fees can be more than £12,000 per term – made his Scotland debut against Tonga in 2021.
He pled guilty to engaging in a course of abusive behaviour towards his partner or ex-partner between April 4 2019 and January 7 2021.
Days after his guilty plea, Glasgow Warriors terminated McLean’s contract with immediate effect.
The club revealed they had sacked the player on the grounds of “gross misconduct” and “breach of contract”.
McLean had made 26 appearances for Glasgow.
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