Aaron Cruden

Aaron Cruden’s pocket as well as his pride will take a hit in the wake of a boozy night in Auckland, while he can also expect to face a New Zealand Rugby Union misconduct hearing.

The All Blacks flyhalf has expressed his “embarrassment” and “shame” after missing the All Blacks flight to Argentina and subsequently losing his place in the squad for Rugby Championship tests against the Pumas and South Africa.

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“On Saturday night, whilst out for an informal dinner in Auckland, I made a poor decision regarding the limits of my alcohol intake,” Cruden said in a statement after spending the day holed up in his Hamilton home with his manager.

“This has resulted in the unacceptable action of me being absent from the All Blacks assembly on Sunday morning and thus missing the team flight to Argentina.

“I am deeply embarrassed by this lack of judgement and have never been more disappointed in myself. I have not only let myself down, but most importantly, I have let the team down.

“I carry the burden of shame and disappointment and I am deeply apologetic to my team, to my family, and also the New Zealand rugby public.

“I have no excuses. I have been working really hard over the past few years at gaining the respect on the field as well as off the field and am devastated I have dropped my own high personal standards, as well as the standards set by New Zealand rugby.

“I accept full responsibility for my actions and the penalty of missing the next two games, and will work with New Zealand rugby to undertake any other disciplinary action to work through this situation.”

It remains unclear what other punishment Cruden will face, but under New Zealand rugby’s players’ collective agreement he is guilty of misconduct under section 92.2 (b) ii: failure to assemble for a team as directed.

The New Zealand Rugby Union is now beholden to investigate though the player has arguably already faced some tough consequences for his actions.

As well as giving up his starting position at first five-eighth, Cruden will presumably miss out on the All Blacks assembly of $7,500 per week, about $15,000 over their two-week tour of South America and South Africa.

New Zealand Rugby Players’ Association boss Rob Nichol said any further sanction would depend on the outcome of the misconduct process.

He said it was important to remember Cruden was entitled to a full and fair hearing which took into account ”the bigger picture”.

“One point I would make is we have a track history now when situations happen with our young people as players, the key thing is the bigger picture and recognising the situation, the environment, the age, and the circumstance that they are under,” he said.

“We have a very strong philosophy that we like people to take responsibility for their actions, to recognise the obligation they have as leading public figures, but we also understand these people are human and they are going to make mistakes.”