Banned NRL star Talatau Junior Amone faces a stint of community service after spitting in a woman's face in a pub after she made insulting comments about the "sensitive" issue of his stalled career.
The former St George Illawarra player was arrested after reports of an assault at Hotel Illawarra in Wollongong in the early hours of August 4, 2024.
CCTV footage of the incident showed Amone and the woman in the gaming room of the pub before an argument broke out.
Defence lawyer Angela Cook told Wollongong Local Court the 22-year-old had been out drinking on the night of the offence and had no plans to meet up with the victim, with whom he previously had a "fleeting intimate interaction".
The woman approached Amone while he was "intently" looking at the screen of a poker machine, Ms Cook said.
The banned player asked the woman "do I know you?" and she replied "don't play dumb with me" before the argument began, according to court documents.
Amone and the woman had known each other for about a year.
"When he went out that night there was no plan whatsoever to make contact with the victim, the meeting was spontaneous," Ms Cook said.
"The victim approaches him (and) what occurs is a brief, short, impulsive, spontaneous and unplanned act."
Ms Cook said the argument started when the woman said "insulting things" about Amone's family and his career.
"It was sensitive at the time and remains sensitive," she said.
"There was a significant crumbling and impact on a career that he had pursued and pursued and pursued and it had fallen apart."
In response, Amone began abusing the woman, calling her a variety of offensive words before spitting in her face.
The ex-Dragons five-eighth had his $500,000 contract torn up in 2023 and is unable to be registered in the NRL until at least 2026 after a hammer attack on a tradesman.
Amone was sentenced to a 24-month intensive correction order in June 2024 after the violent confrontation with the man, who had parked on a neighbouring property in November 2022.
He smashed the man's car windscreen with the hammer before climbing onto a roof and chasing the victim, who fell from a building and hit an air-conditioning unit on the way down.
Amone had diligently completed community service during his intensive correction order for his previous offence, Ms Cook argued.
He also actively pursued treatment with a psychologist for adjustment disorder with mixed anxiety and depressive symptoms, she said.
"The guilty plea is indicative of contrition and remorse," Ms Cook added.
Magistrate Michael Love said he wanted to see a report from community corrections before sentencing Amone.
The magistrate said he was not considering a custodial sentence for Amone's "disgusting and reprehensible" act, but would rather impose further community service to "repay the harm done to the community".
Amone will be sentenced on February 25.