LONDON, England (CMC) — Callum Harriott, a 28-year-old Guyana international based in England, says his United Kingdom football career has been shattered despite being cleared of raping a woman by a jury at Ipswich Crown Court.

Harriott, a winger who most recently played for League Two club Colchester United, said he was “devastated” by the allegation made against him after a night out in Colchester in November 2019 — the same month he scored his first international goal for Guyana in a 4-2 win against Aruba during a Concacaf Nations League match.

He made his debut for the Jaguars against Belize eight months earlier.

The unnamed complainant, a woman in her 20s, claimed she was raped while she slept at Harriott’s former home in Colchester, hours after the pair met in a cocktail bar. Harriott maintained the sex was consensual.

Following the unanimous not guilty verdict after a five-day trial, the footballer, who played for Colchester between 2019 and 2021, issued a statement on social media saying the damage his career had suffered was “irrecoverable”.

“The arrest relied upon baseless allegations which were exposed by a belated and full investigation long before the trial commenced,” said Harriott, who now lives in Biggin Hill, Greater London.

“Not only were my family and I devastated by the false claim but my career [was also] shattered.

“The public had appeared to have already made up their minds due to the reports in the media, only for me to be exonerated by a unanimous jury verdict three years later.

“But the damage had been done. I was subjected to online abuse and vilification.

“Three years lost in a successful young footballer’s playing career is irrecoverable, it is life-changing.

“The damage done to family, friends, colleagues, my professional life and income was intolerable.

“I could not have survived the ordeal had it not been for the unwavering support of my close friends, many colleagues and my family.”

Harriott, who scored 12 goals in 64 appearances for Colchester before his contract expired in May 2021, nodded and held his head in his hands when the jury returned their verdict.

Harriott said he lost another year of his professional career because of delays regarding the crown court backlog.

“As the verdict of the jury has demonstrated, this was entirely without justification,” he said.