Former rugby league star Tawera Nikau is appealing his conviction for assaulting his daughter.
Nikau, 45, was sentenced in Hamilton District Court yesterday after an application to be discharged without conviction was denied by Judge Peter Spiller.
In a dispute outside the Huntly police station in February, Nikau grabbed his daughter Heaven-Leigh by the neck, forcing her to fall to the ground.
He denied the male assaults female charge, saying it was self-defence, but was found guilty in June. He was ordered to pay $250 in reparation to his daughter.
Nikau's lawyer Gary Gotlieb confirmed to NZ Newswire this morning that an appeal against the conviction had been lodged yesterday.
Nikau, who lost his right leg in a motorcycle accident in 2003, played 19 Tests for New Zealand in the late 1980s and 1990s.
NZN