Jonathan Woodgate was found guilty of affray in 2001

The intense growth in interest in the off-pitch behaviour of England's top players has mirrored their increasing wealth and glamorous image.

Recent months have been particularly damaging for the image of the game, with a number of high profile sex allegations and controversies.

Commentators have railed against a small minority of players, saying they are not fulfilling their job as role models.

But the chief executive of the Professional Footballers Association, Gordon Taylor, believes the media tends to "blow up" such allegations.

Despite the thousands of column inches dedicated to the antics of footballers, a trawl through the archives reveals a lower number of convictions that the public may perceive.

Among them was the eight-month ban and �50,000 fine handed to Rio Ferdinand by the Football Association in December, after he was found guilty of missing a drugs test.

You are a young man who has yet to learn that fame and wealth bring responsibility Judge on footballer Des Byrne

The ensuing row saw the relationship between the Football Association and the England players become strained.

The players were angered by the way Rio Ferdinand was axed for an international game and threatened to strike.

Charge dropped

Again in late 2003 two footballers were questioned over an alleged rape at London's Grosvenor House Hotel.

The case attracted huge publicity after a 17-year-old woman told police she had been raped by four men.

In January the Crown Prosecution Service decided the men would not face charges due to insufficient evidence.

Newcastle's Titus Bramble and Carlton Cole, who is on loan to Charlton from Chelsea, were named as the players accused after police questioning, and both denied the claims.

A media frenzy ensued after a rape claim at this London hotel

At around the same time last year Leeds United's Jody Morris was arrested and later charged after an allegation of rape by a 20-year-old woman.

The rape charge was dropped when the CPS said there was no realistic prospect of getting a conviction.

In April last year Leeds player Michael Duberry and Manchester United's Rio Ferdinand were accused of indecent assault and threatening behaviour in a Leeds nightclub.

The claims were made during the rape trial of a Leeds man, who was later convicted.

Martin Luther King claimed his victim said she had been indecently assaulted by Mr Duberry and threatened by Mr Ferdinand in the club, before the rape by Mr King took place.

The CPS said there was insufficient evidence to prosecute the players.

In August 2002 three footballers were cleared of starting a violent brawl at a London nightclub.

Jailed

Chelsea players John Terry, Jody Morris, and Wimbledon's Des Byrne, were all cleared of affray.

Finding Mr Byrne guilty of possessing an offensive weapon and fining him �2,000, the judge said: "You are a young man who has yet to learn that fame and wealth bring responsibility."

The players said they were defending themselves from a bouncer when a fight broke out at the club's entrance.

One of the sport's highest profile court cases in recent times was that of the then Leeds United players Jonathan Woodgate and Lee Bowyer, in 2001.

They were accused of being involved in an attack on student Sarfraz Najeib, then 21, which left him unconscious and badly injured.

Mr Woodgate was found guilty of affray and was given 100 hours community service but escaped a custodial sentence.

Both he and Mr Bowyer were cleared of causing grievous bodily harm with intent.

The nine-week trial was the second in the case, after the first collapsed following an article in a Sunday newspaper.

Last August Lee Bowyer spoke out to refute claims he was racist.