Harsh decision from Diageo pushes rugby pair back in spotlight

‘I believe her,’ they said, in reference to the complainant in the case.

The high-profile trial was a traumatic episode for everyone who took to the witness stand. But a key fact in that was consciously overlooked by the protestors.

The jury who sat through every part of the case decided unanimously that the pair were not guilty, as were two other rugby players acquitted of lesser charges.

Those jurors did not agonise for days, or divide amongst themselves so as to form a majority verdict or find that they were unable to reach a verdict at all.

So when people who did not sit through the case make clear, in effect, they do not believe Olding and Jackson, they seem happy to damage, even destroy, their careers.

Both ultimately found new playing positions but have suffered. Their behaviour the night of the claimed rape was, by their own admission, appalling. But many athletic young men behave appallingly on a regular basis after drink. We live in a culture in which heavy drinking, promiscuity and other behaviours, once considered to be vices, are common in many young people.

The decision of Diageo to withdraw its sponsorship from London Irish, where Jackson now plays, is a harsh one that pushes the rugby pair back into the limelight.