The ECB has launched an investigation into an all-night drinking session involving Joe Root and James Anderson.The video, which appears to have been taken by Graham Thorpe, England's assistant coach, and somehow obtained by the Sydney Morning Herald, showed Joe Root and James Anderson along with Travis Head, Nathan Lyon and Alex Carey being spoken to by several police officers as they sat around a table of drinks at 6am. The group were outside on the fourth-floor terrace of the Crowne Plaza hotel and were asked to return to their rooms by the police officers. They did so immediately. In the footage, an officer can be heard saying: "Too loud. You have obviously been asked to pack up, so we've been asked to come. Time for bed. Thank you. They just want to pack up." "Tasmania Police attended the Crowne Plaza Hobart on Monday morning after reports were made of intoxicated people in a function area," said a police statement. "The guests were spoken to by police, just after 6:00am, and left the area when asked. No further action will be taken by police."
The Herald quoted the hotel general manager as saying the noise complaint had come from outside the hotel and that the players had not misbehaved or been asked to leave, contradicting the police officer heard on the video. "To the best of my knowledge there was some noise complaints from outside," Ms Collins told the Herald and The Age."We're in the middle of the city and there is noise and other things. We get all sorts of random things and police will turn up. There was nothing untoward. No one was removed from the hotel. It's not uncommon to get people complaining about noise."The ECB said they would be investigating the incident and particular focus is likely to be given to how the video got into the public domain. "During the early hours of Monday morning, members of the England and Australia men's teams shared a drink in the team areas of the hotel in Hobart," an ECB statement read. "The hotel management received a noise complaint by a hotel guest, and as is commonplace in Australia, the local police attended the scene. "When asked to leave by hotel management and the Tasmanian police, the players and management in question left and returned to their respective hotel rooms. The England party have apologised for any inconvenience caused. The ECB will investigate further. Until such times, we will make no further comment. "Even though there is no suggestion that any of the players did anything wrong, the incident is an untimely one for the ECB, coming at the end of a disastrous tour for England and following accusations of a drinking culture within the squad.
