Former Bradford City star Dean Windass gets driving ban for being 3 times over limit (From Bradford Telegraph and Argus)

Bantams legend crashed car in Baildon after night out in Hull

6:10pm Monday 15th October 2012 in Bantams By Kathie Griffiths, T&A Reporter

Bradford City football legend Dean Windass was fully aware he was over the limit when he got into his silver Mercedes-Benz after drinking wine and lager at a soccer match in Hull, a court was told today.

The 43-year-old was banned from driving for 28 months and ordered to carry out 250 hours’ unpaid community work by Bradford and Keighley Magistrates after he pleaded guilty to being three times over the drink-drive limit.

The former City striker had drunk two large glasses of wine and two pints of lager in Hull before deciding to drive home to Menston after plans to stay over at a friend’s had not worked out.

But on the way back he had got lost and fallen asleep at the wheel, colliding with a parked car in Otley Road, Baildon. Police were called and he was arrested.

The player, City’s third highest goalscorer in history who now sells nuts and bolts for a fixings firm in Hull, was also ordered to pay a total of £165 costs and asked for 14 days to pay it.

He also opted to go on a drink-drive rehabilitation course which could reduce his ban by 28 weeks.

In mitigation, Windass’s solicitor Maria Tempkow said depression “had got the worst” of her client who had struggled with his lifestyle change since retiring from football. His father had died and he had marriage problems.

Miss Tempkow said: “He says he does not have a drink problem, he says he’s not an alcoholic. He has been for rehabilitation where he has been told his problem is not alcohol – it’s depression.

“It’s difficult, that change from being the centre of attention to having nothing to get up for or put your kit on for. It’s the depression that has got the worst of him but he is optimistic about the future.”

She said her client “bitterly regretted” getting into his car that night but was in court showing the attitude “when you’ve done something wrong, you hold your hands up”.

She said: “He has to learn to take more help than he has been taking. Maybe with assistance from the probation service and his family he can start to look forward and not back.”

A probation officer, who gave magistrates a report, said Windass was “ashamed and embarrassed for what he had done” and that he had vowed it would never happen again.

The striker, scored 87 goals in 243 appearances during two spells with City, and was top scorer in four consecutive seasons, before leaving for Hull City, where he scored the winning goal in the 2008 play-off final to take the club into the Premiership. After the hearing he refused to talk to waiting media, but in an earlier interview with the Telegraph & Argus had said: “I’ve made a mistake. It doesn’t make you a bad person.

“It’s my first offence. I’ve been through a bad three years.”