REPORTS in Australia say former Saints full back Ben Barba has been arrested and charged with assaulting a man at a pub.

Barba, who is currently banned from playing in the NRL, was arrested on Friday after allegedly punching his brother-in-law in the face.

The Australian newspaper The Courier Mail reports the man he punched was the brother of Barba’s partner Ainslie Currie.

He was charged with assault occasioning actual bodily harm.

Barba left Saints at the end of the 2018 season - a year in which he won the Man of Steel award.

He signed for North Queensland but was barred indefinitely from the game at the start of last season after an incident with his partner outside a Townsville casino.