Faulkner to face drink-driving charge

James Faulkner, the World Cup-winning Australia allrounder, may be left out of the ODI squad for the series following the Ashes after he spent Thursday night in a prison cell in Manchester on a drink driving charge.

Greater Manchester Police charged Faulkner and he is due to appear in court in Manchester on July 21 to answer for himself after recording a blood alcohol reading of around twice the legal limit in England. He had been out on Thursday night spending time with his Tasmania team-mate Tim Paine.

CA has also charged Faulkner with "conduct that is unbecoming of a representative or official and harmful to the interests of cricket" under its code of conduct, meaning he can be suspended for anywhere up to eight matches.

Pat Howard, the team performance manager, met with Faulkner in Manchester on Friday morning and said if the code of conduct penalty was more than two matches there was a strong chance that Faulkner would be left out of the squad entirely - a heavy price for his poor decision making.

"It's anywhere between two and eight points, which is two or eight games," Howard said. "We'll take that information on board as well in terms of dealing with the selectors, and if he's only available for part of the tour we might just say 'sorry, you're off the tour'."

Lancashire determined that Faulkner would be stood down from their Friday night Twenty20 fixture against Yorkshire at Old Trafford and will speak further with CA about what other action may yet be taken.

A contrite Faulkner said he would accept whatever penalties were handed down to him. "I can't excuse my actions and understand that I have let people down," he said. "My decision to drive was an error in judgement. I apologise unreservedly and accept any penalty handed to me by Cricket Australia and the relevant authorities."

Howard said Faulkner's transgression had set a poor example for others and would be treated as such by CA. "I have made contact with James to understand the facts of the matter," he said. "It is clear that he made a very poor decision to get behind the wheel of a car after drinking and that decision had clear potential to cause serious harm to him and others.

"It is also clear that he is very disappointed and embarrassed by his actions given his position as a role model to young people. This is a very real wake-up call for James and all other Australian cricketers around the importance of responsible decision making.

"I have expressed my extreme disappointment and have informed him of the consequences under English law and Cricket Australia's own regulations."

Faulkner played one Test on the 2013 Ashes tour and has been a pivotal member of the Australia ODI team. He shrugged off a side strain leading into the World Cup to put in several key performances, not least a bowling spell that won him the Man of the Match award in the final against New Zealand.

Under the national coach Darren Lehmann, Australia's players have embraced a culture of raucous celebration when victorious, and players are not handled as strictly as they once were. Howard said that a balance had to be found and Faulkner had overstepped the mark.

"We enjoy people doing things in moderation and he well and truly overstepped that boundary," Howard said. "The decision to jump into a car behind the wheel was a very bad decision and as a consequence he's going to have to deal with that. I'm really disappointed for him, but we're really disappointed in him."