GARY NEVILLE HITS OUT

"There is no doubt in my mind that Rio Ferdinand was
prejudged by the Football Association. Yes, he missed a
drugs test, but he deserved a hearing before people started
passing sentence. Other players have missed drug tests and
not been banned, but Rio was punished even before he had the
chance to explain himself. How is that not a prejudgment?

"On the issue of confidentiality, the players felt extremely
strongly. The FA denied leaking Rio's name, but did they
really believe that it would remain a secret when the press
knew that the squad announcement had been delayed by 48
hours because of something serious?

"Whether first-hand from the FA or not, the information was
always going to seep out with a whisper here or a quiet word
there and so it proved with front-page headlines. Ask me
what qualities distinguish the English and I would say
honesty, fairness, hard work and loyalty. I believe that the
England team and the immediate staff lived up to those
ideals from the moment we met up last Tuesday right up to
the final whistle on Saturday night.

"The United players in the England squad knew we had to do
something and we were pleased that, when we turned up at the
team hotel, we were not the only ones who felt strongly.

"Last week we did what we believed was right for a team-mate
who had been badly let down.

"None of us condones drugs, none of us believes that drugs
tests should be taken lightly, but we also believe that Rio
deserved our loyalty when he was hung out to dry before a
trial."