Courtney Lawes banned from driving for six months

Courtney Laws stepped down as an England player in October 2023

Former England flanker and Northampton Saints player Courtney Lawes has been banned from driving for six months for speeding.

Lawes, 35, from Raventhorpe, Northampton, was caught driving a Bentley at 02:00 BST on 13 June, on the southbound carriageway of the M1 between junctions 15 and 14.

He pleaded guilty at Wellingborough Magistrates' Court on 8 March.

The road's speed limit had been lowered to 40mph (64km/h) and he was filmed travelling at 73mph (117km/h).

Courtney Lawes has been at Northampton his whole career and made his debut in 2007 against Esher in National League One - now the Championship

He attended the hearing and was fined £1,666, told to pay a £666 victim surcharge and £90 costs, as first reported by the Northampton Chronicle and Echo.

Court documents said he was disqualified from driving for six months due to "repeat offending".

His guilty plea was taken into account when imposing the sentence, the court said.

Lawes is due to leave Saints at the end of the season to join French club Brive.

He retired from England duty at the end of the Rugby World Cup 2023 in October.

He has played in four World Cups and two British and Irish Lions tours and is one of only five Englishmen to be capped 100 times.

The sportsman has played more than 17 seasons at Franklin's Gardens and made more than 270 appearances.