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By WAYNE FLOWER, SENIOR NEWS REPORTER, AUSTRALIA

Published: 04:19 BST, 28 August 2026 | Updated: 07:06 BST, 29 August 2026

Disgraced former AFL star Nicky Winmar has been sentenced to jail over his latest violent attack on a woman in northern Victoria last year. 

Winmar, 60, was last month found guilty of three counts of unlawful assault and common law assault against his female victim. He had claimed the woman was lying.

In response, he was swiftly removed from the Australian Football Hall of Fame and a bronze statue of him was removed from Perth Stadium.

On Friday, Winmar dropped his head as he was sentenced to six months behind bars at Bendigo Magistrates Court, with a community corrections order for one year after release.

His barrister Dermot Dann KC immediately lodged an appeal and hoped to have Winmar back on the streets on appeal bail by the end of the day. 

Winmar had hoped to be spared jail time for his stance against racism in 1993 when he famously pointed to the colour of his skin to a marauding Collingwood crowd. 

But Magistrate Trieu Huynh declared Winmar's behaviour could not be mitigated by his actions on a football field more than 30 years ago. 

'Blessed with athletic prowess, you were able to scale the heights of the footballing world, achieving the numerous accolades referred to by your counsel,' he told Winmar. 

'Notoriety extended beyond just the sporting arena, when you took a stand in front of a hostile crowd at Victoria Park in 93, lifting your jumper and pointing to your skin to show pride in your heritage and demonstrating that racism had no place in sport or society. 

'This moment was immortalised in the form of a statue in Perth, which I'm told has since been taken down following these proceedings.'

The court heard Winmar had since been stripped of various sporting accolades bestowed on him through the years. 

'Given the broader impact of the Victoria Park moment on the community and your personal pride in effecting change in this way, I do accept that you have experienced extracurial punishment,' the magistrate said. 

'However, given the seriousness of the offending behaviour and the past opportunities you have been given at rehabilitation, I can only apply limited weight to this consideration.'

Winmar had for years hung his hat on his actions on April 17, 1993 when he pointed to his skin as Collingwood fans racially abused him.

But the court heard Winmar had been abusing women as far back as 1997 when he was convicted of DV-related charges.

In 1999, he was convicted for breaching an intervention order and assaulting the same woman.

In 2019, he also assaulted a taxi driver.

'The objective gravity of the offending, however, must be considered, and in my view, must be classified as serious,' Mr Huynh said. 

'With respect to the assault charges, they relate to three distinct acts involving grabbing and twisting of (your victim's) arm, pulling her across the lounge by her ponytail, such that bits of her hair fell out the following morning, and hitting her head against a solid door four times with such force that it caused the door to crack.'

The court heard Winmar's violence had 'come out of nowhere' and in a series of 'uncharged acts' had screamed and spat on the woman. 

'In the direct aftermath of your offending, it was clear to see in the body-worn camera footage, where she presented as dishevelled and distressed,' Mr Huynh said. 

His victim later told police of her ordeal at the hands of Winmar. 

'In her evidence, she described feeling broken in that room and failed to comprehend how someone she loved could be so brutal,' the magistrate said. 

'She describes feeling worthless, lacking confidence, not being able to go places she used to go, no longer feeling safe, lost faith and trust in people, and experiences hyper vigilance and suffers panic attacks.

'She describes herself as being the shadow of the person she was as a result of the trauma she endured.'

Winmar's victim, who cannot be identified for legal reasons, told the court that she was 'fearful' for her life during the incident in May 2025 at Cohuna, in Victoria's north.

Mr Dann had urged the court to let his client off with a community-based order rather than jailing him.

He urged the court to consider Winmar's contribution to Australian society, his rehabilitation efforts, including nearly a year of alcohol abstinence.

He further pointed to Winmar's engagement with counselling and behaviour-change programs, his age, background and personal circumstances.

He argued that despite the seriousness of the offending, Winmar had not reached the point where imprisonment was the only option and urged the magistrate to consider a community correction order.

More to come.