Mystery woman 'friend of Tindall's'

Video footage of Mike Tindall kissing and hugging a mystery woman during a night out just show the England rugby captain with an “old friend”, according to a source.

The CCTV images of Tindall in the company of the blond-haired woman have been posted online a day after it emerged the sportsman enjoyed a night of drinking in a New Zealand bar.

At one point the footage shows the player, who married the Queen’s granddaughter Zara Phillips six weeks ago, wrapping his left arm around the woman before sharing a kiss.

The pair continued to chat close to the exit of Altitude bar in Queenstown before Tindall bowed his head and she grabbed it with both hands, kissing his crown.

But a source stressed there was nothing untoward about the sportsman’s behaviour who was with a friend whom Zara also knows.

The source said: “She’s an old friend of the couple and she was on holiday in Queenstown.”

Tindall had joined other rugby squad members at the bar on Sunday night which was hosting a “Mad Midget Weekender”.

The players were given the evening off after Tindall captained England to a 13-9 victory over Argentina in their opening game of the Rugby World Cup being staged in New Zealand.

The CCTV footage has been posted on various websites in New Zealand and is interspersed with piece-to-cameras by the uploader, who described himself as a bouncer.

At the start he stressed noone would make a “cent” from the video then midway through the footage said: “Mr Tindall, your behaviour was unbecoming, especially to someone such as the Queen and Zara Phillips, I do feel for them.”

He goes on to say: “Mr Tindall, you gave your word to God, Queen and country, and you come to my country with the Rugby World Cup and behave in a manner unbecoming of someone which is an ambassador of your country.”

Tindall and the mystery woman are first shown in the video, recorded in the early hours of Monday morning, chatting at the bar before they are joined by another woman.

The footage then moves to the nightspot’s entrance where the sportsman and woman continue talking and she kisses Zara’s husband on the head.

The final moments show the pair outside the bar in the street where Tindall again has his arm wrapped around the mystery female.

As drinkers leave, the pair are joined by a group of people before walking off out of view.

Zara is expected to fly out to watch her husband play in the World Cup in the coming weeks.

England coach Martin Johnson has defended the right of his players to “let off a bit of steam” during a major tournament.

Johnson said before the team left for New Zealand that he would not be imposing drinking bans on the squad, and stuck by that decision today.

He said: “You have got to relieve the pressure and let off steam at the right time. It was a good idea.

“In the pressure of the World Cup you have got to find the opportunity to do things like that, enjoy yourself and let off a bit of steam.

“I had no problem with them doing that. We all know when you have a rugby team that part of it is the bonding off the field.”

A spokeswoman for Ms Phillips declined to comment.