NRL fanatic's Instagram account shut down as league investigates online commentary
The Instagram account of the 'most feared man in the NRL' has been shut down, after the league's integrity unit was alerted to allegedly abusive rants directed at Dragons Coach Shane Flanagan.
The Dragons raised concerns with the NRL after an X-rated rant on social media from 25-year-old apprentice carpenter and content creator Jean-Claude Bitar went viral.
The account is no longer active.
Speaking to news.com.au, Bitar said the NRL should be focusing on 'bigger issues of the game' and vowed he 'will not be silenced.'
'They're taking away the voice of a fanatic fan who spends his hard-earned money to support the club through thick and thin. I've been here for over 20 years and I never miss a game. I have never incited violence or conspired to have anyone message players or coaches personally; if anything, I tell everyone not to do that. As a fan, I have the right to criticise the performance of players, as does everyone else. I'm livid with the fact that a big company such as the NRL is going after a small content creator like me who creates entertainment through his pain,' he added.
'They've tried to silence me, but in turn, this will make me grow and make people more intrigued to hear what I've got to say because of this.
'In terms of my Instagram ban, I feel very wronged. My page was pure entertainment, and having past and present players, commentators, managers, and journalists reach out to me expressing their love for my content, I believe the NRL has gone way overboard with this.'
Bitar might not even play in the NRL, but has them running scared thanks to a series of social media videos that have gone viral.
Declared the 'funniest man on the net at the moment' by Bulldogs legend Reni Maitua after taking down Dragon's father and son Shane and Kyle Flanagan in a rant that has been viewed almost 500,000 times, Bitar's hard hitting commentary has attracted the attention of rugby league heavyweights, including NRL 360 host Braith Anasta, who has hailed him as 'ruthless.'
'If that were you or one of your mates he was talking about, you'd want to kill him,' Anasta said.
'Can you imagine watching that if you were Shane or Kyle? Oh my God. But as ruthless as he is and sometimes over the top, he is also creative. I couldn't wait to see what he did after the Sharks (v Dragons) game last week. But could you imagine seeing that if you were following him and you were the player?'.
Fresh from taking aim at State of Origin referee Ashley Klein following NSW's failed comeback against Queensland in another video that has stormed the net, Bitar revealed he has been blocked from viewing the St George Illawarra website and their social media accounts after being critical of the club.
'I went to look at the team list about six weeks ago and I couldn't find it,' Bitar told news.com.au.
'I thought maybe there was a glitch. Then I went to TikTok and Facebook, and I realised I was blocked on all accounts. I could not believe they were blocking a supporter because he is speaking the thoughts of every fan.'
Being blocked did not deter the carpenter from Belfield.
'Na, I made a video straight away saying they were pathetic and it was one of my biggest hits.'
A host of NRL players have personally contacted Bitar.
Some tell him they love his work. Others tell him to stop.
'The first person to contact me was Blake Lawrie's brother,' he said.
'I was giving it to him a bit, and then I remember his brother reached out to me and said: 'you have got to stop making these videos. You're gonna get yourself in big trouble.'
'But I didn't stop. Not when I knew the players were actually watching my videos.'
Most of his videos are about St George Illawarra given Bitar is a 'die hard' Dragons fan who has supported the club since he could walk – and was even in their junior development squad.
'Most of the players are fans,' Bitar said.
'They come up to me at games and recite my jokes'.
Filming his first NRL post in February, Bitar's videos have gone viral, and he has now posted more than 150.
'They are all pretty big at the moment,' he said.
'Right now, there's the Origin one that's going around, that's got 300,000 views. I think my biggest is one about my reaction to a game that got almost half a million.'
And in a warning to the NRL's underperforming and out-of-form, Bitar declared he has just begun.
'Regardless of whether they block me, I'm gonna keep going with the videos.
'People are enjoying it. I'm enjoying it. I'm doing this for fun. I'm a footy fanatic and I have the right to express my views. I'm just saying what everyone is thinking,' he said.
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