Rugby analyst "quits" social media over abuse by South Africa fans

By Ben Coles of Daily Telegraph UK

Rugby analyst Robbie Owen, who goes by the handle “Squidge Rugby”, has announced his decision to stop posting on social media following a volume of online abuse affecting his mental health.

Owen is now part of ITV’s new weekly Gallagher Premiership highlights show, having built up a substantial following on social media, with more than 100,000 followers on X (formerly Twitter). His YouTube channel has close to 250,000 subscribers, with some videos analysing test teams across the globe amassing a million views.

While adding that he would consider occasionally posting on the social media platform regarding new videos, the content creator confirmed he was stepping back from using X on a daily basis, given how much abusive messages had “affected my mental health over the last few months”. He faced a backlash for his belief that Antoine Dupont is the greatest rugby player of all time following the France team winning gold in the men’s sevens at the Olympics.

Owen has been repeatedly tagged in messages by apparent South Africa fans, who have taken exception to the Dupont claim.

Owen continued: “The scale and aggression of s*** in my mentions and DMs every day for three months is something I sincerely hope nobody else ever has to go through.

“I could recount all the s*** I’ve received (threats of violence, assertions about my character, kill-yourself stuff, nothing I haven’t had before) but ultimately, I just don’t want to do this anymore, and with the site going the way it is anyway, I don’t see any point trying.

“We’ve got a new video coming tomorrow and maybe I pop back in every so often to share new videos and updates, but being here all day every day, getting a new log of shit every few minutes has ground my mental health down into a fine paste. And I don’t want that any more.”

Owen’s work has been praised in the past by South Africa head coach Rassie Erasmus, who complimented his understanding of the game and humour.

This article was first published on nzherald.co.nz and is republished here with permission