Calum Davenport charged with assault of his sister

West Ham defender Calum Davenport was yesterday charged with assaulting his pregnant sister during the incident that ultimately saw the former England under-21 international stabbed in both legs. The world of football had been shocked in August when the 26-year-old Davenport was attacked in the driveway of his mother's home in Bedford.

The footballer was taken to Bedford hospital after the incident, which took place at 5am in the morning of 22 August, and had to undergo emergency surgery having lost 50 per cent of the blood in his body. Initial reports suggested that his footballing career was in the balance and that he could even have lost his legs, but he has subsequently returned to light training for the Hammers.

Worrell Whitehurst, the 25-year-old boyfriend of Davenport's sister Cara was charged in August with grievous bodily harm. But at the time police said that they would "work backwards" to find out what had led to the incident, which also saw Whitehurst allegedly attack Davenport's mother, 49-year-old Kim Stupple.

Yesterday Bedfordshire police said that: "Professional footballer Calum Davenport has been charged with assault causing actual bodily harm on a woman following an incident in Bedford on 22 August." The footballer will be up on the charge before Bedford Magistrates Court on November 10.

The footballer responded with a statement in which he declared himself "deeply shocked and disappointed at the decision that has been made to charge me with assault. I deny any wrongdoing and will plead not guilty. For legal reasons, I am unable to discuss the matter further at this time."

Davenport joined West Ham in 2007 from Spurs for £3m, but was loaned out to Sunderland last season. He recently thanked his teammates and staff at Bedford Hospital on the West Ham website for all their support. ·