Footballer Ched Evans won his appeal against his conviction for raping a 19-year-old woman yesterday.

Court of Appeal judges in London ordered that he must now face a fresh trial.

Evans, now 27, was convicted in April 2012, having been found guilty at Caernarfon Crown Court of raping the woman at a hotel in Rhyl, north Wales.

The court’s decision was announced early yesterday, following appeal proceedings last month.

The former Sheffield United striker and Wales international was present in the packed London courtroom with girlfriend Natasha Massey by his side to hear the result of his conviction challenge.

In court, Lady Justice Hallett read out a statement containing the court’s conclusions, which she said could be reported and broadcast “in full.”

She said: “On 20 April 2012, a jury at the Caernarfon Crown Court convicted the appellant of an offence of rape.

“He was sentenced to five years imprisonment and he has since been released on licence.

“He appealed to this court against conviction on a reference by the Criminal Cases Review Commission (the CCRC) on the basis that relevant and admissible evidence has come to light, that was not available at trial, and that undermines the safety of his conviction.”

The judge further stated: “The identity of the complainant in this case must not be reported.”

She said a fresh indictment “must be served” and “the appellant must be re-arraigned on that fresh indictment within two months of today.”

Women Against Rape told the Star that the low conviction rate was “a result of negligent investigations and the suspicion on the person reporting the crime, rather than the police investigating with an open mind and gathering evidence.

“We have seen many cases closed by police without consulting the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS), evidence being lost and witnesses not being contacted.”

Women Against Rape added that: “Comments being made in the media about the balance being swung too far towards victims come in the wake of high-profile investigations into famous people. Some have resulted in convictions but not all.

“We do not believe this, we think that is a real distortion of what women bring to us every day.

“Victims still face obstacles in getting their attacker convicted. That should be tackled.”