Ferdinand begins eight-month ban

ENGLAND defender Rio Ferdinand has officially started his eight-month ban from football, the day after he appealed against his suspension for missing a drugs test, it was announced by the Football Association last night.

The 25-year-old Manchester United centre-back starts his ban today, but has decided to appeal the decision by a tribunal in December that he merited an eight-month ban a decision deemed "savage" and "unprecedented" by club lawyer Maurice Watkins.

"I want to get back playing," Ferdinand said. "If starting the suspension now will help, then I'm prepared to suffer it."

The FA will set up another three-man panel, chaired by a legally qualified non-FA representative to determine Ferdinand's fate, but any hearing might not take place until the end of February or even the beginning of March. If the ban is upheld, Ferdinand will be barred from playing until September 20.

However, with England due to begin their Euro 2004 campaign against France in Lisbon on June 13, Ferdinand knows he would be clear to play if his suspension is halved.

However, no diminution of his punishment would rule him out of the remainder of United's season, Euro 2004 and the start of the 2004-05 campaign, including England's first two World Cup qualifiers in Austria and Poland.

The three-man appeals panel could theoretically increase Ferdinand's sentence, although his decision to begin the ban would appear to make that unlikely. In a statement, Ferdinand apologised for his "oversight" in missing the test and said he wanted to resume playing as soon as possible. "I feel strongly that I have given an honest account of the circumstances which led to my mistake and I believe that the verdict and the ban are wrong."

Manchester United chief executive David Gill underlined the club's new non-confrontational approach over the issue, by admitting Ferdinand had made "a serious mistake" when he drove away from United's training ground on September 23 after being asked to provide a urine sample for a doping control.

Gill said: "Rio recognises that he has made a serious mistake, which is why he will begin the suspension immediately rather than wait for the outcome of the appeals procedure."

Even if Ferdinand loses his appeal, the case will not necessarily end there. He could resort to action in the civil courts or plead his case before the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS).