Thomas Ryan, 24, appeared in the Dunedin District Court this afternoon after pleading guilty to charges of making and posting an intimate visual recording.
The Green Island Premier 2 player sent the clip to a group chat of more than 30 people, including teammates referencing the team’s nickname (“up the battlers”) in the caption.
The victim today told the court the distribution of the video had been devastating.
“That’s not just careless that’s cruel,” she said. “He let others join in on the violation of my privacy and dignity.”
She said she had become “consumed by anxiety, fear and shame” in the aftermath and constantly worried about who had seen the footage.
Judge Hermann Retzlaff described the offending as “appalling” and said it suggested a “culture of entitlement”.
The possible consequences, including that Ryan maybe barred from a job in teaching, did not outweigh the gravity of the crime, he said, dismissing the application for a discharge without conviction.
The defendant was sentenced to nine months’ supervision and ordered to pay the victim $3000.
A Green Island Rugby Club coach initially said Ryan, and fellow player 24-year-old Oliver Bugden who also filmed the sleeping woman in bed later that night, were cleared to play the final two games of the season.
But once the Otago Daily Times published details of the incident, a spokesman confirmed the duo had been stood down for the remainder of the year.
New Zealand Rugby (NZR) described the behaviour of the players as “completely unacceptable” and in a statement today said it had since supported Green Island Rugby Club “implementing meaningful initiatives that reflect its core values and reinforce positive change”.
The court heard Ryan met the victim, after consuming alcohol, in the early hours of June 8.
After returning to his Dunedin flat, the intimacy ensued and court documents revealed how he used his cell phone to record the events.
“He held the camera above himself and while recording he captured his face then scanned to his groin area.”
Ryan posted the footage to the Snapchat group which allowed members to “duplicate or save the video and further distribute it”.
He was only caught when one of the recipients sent it to an associate who recognised the victim and alerted her.
She in turn informed police and when they interviewed Ryan he admitted the secret filming and said he was “showing off”.
Counsel Anne Stevens KC said her client had immediately lost his job as a high-school rowing coach and his ambitions to be a teacher were now in extreme jeopardy.
She said Ryan had engaged in counselling since the crime and had been attending Alcoholics Anonymous.
A Green Island Rugby Club spokesman previously told the Otago Daily Times the club condemned the behaviour of the pair and its thoughts were with the victim and her whanau during the “deeply distressing time”.
In a statement published on social-media accounts this afternoon, the spokesman said they had worked with Ōtepoti Communities Against Sexual Abuse to formulate workshops for players and management before the start of next season, focusing on “respectful behaviour, accountability, and preventing harm”.
The initiative was being considered for a club-wide rollout by Otago Rugby, the statement said.
The club was also working on a code of conduct, to be finalised before the 2026 season.
NZR said the measures would “equip players with the knowledge and tools to help shape a sporting environment that is welcoming, safe, and inclusive for all”.
Bugden is scheduled to be sentenced next month.
