CW: Mention of Sexual Assault

Five Sydney Swans players have been suspended amid allegations of sexual assault. However, the sports community’s reception of the incident leaves questions on the AFL’s mentality surrounding women’s issues.

The players allegedly linked to the incident and have spoken to Victoria police are Riley Bice, Nick Blakey, Isaac Heeney, James Jordon and Chad Warner. However, the woman involved alleged that nine men were in the room.

It is understood that Victoria Police’s sex crimes squad are focusing on the actions of senior player Heeney.

The AFL integrity department is conducting its own inquiries as Victoria Police detectives continue their investigations.

Farrago is not suggesting any of the mentioned names are guilty of assault.

It is alleged that a player had arranged for at least two women to join them at the Wellington Parade hotel in the early hours of Monday after a group of Swans players had been out in Melbourne following a 36 point win against Essendon.

The alleged victim spoke exclusively to The Herald Sun. She claimed she was hired to perform lap dances at a discounted rate by Swans players after they claimed they were carpenters and could not afford to pay the full rate.

“I’m going to stand up for what is right. And I’m never going to let this happen to anyone else. Justice will be served,” the alleged victim told The Herald Sun, “I care about women’s rights and what’s right, because this happens too often to women and they get away with it.”

One of the other women claimed they were locked out of the room while naked.

A lawyer representing two of the women involved, John Karantzis, said that the allegations involving actions between the player and the women had gone further than agreed.

“With what has been alleged, these women were subject to the most disgusting actions and behaviour I have ever heard about in my 28 years as a lawyer,” he told 3AW. 

A woman was then spotted by onlookers in the hotel lobby, looking visibly and audibly upset, telling venue and club staff that she had been “inappropriately touched” and felt overwhelmed as she was surrounded by multiple men in the room.

The alleged victim made a statement to police on Monday morning while detectives took statements from two other women who were at the hotel the following Tuesday and Wednesday, according to sources.

Swans players were also spoken to by police, but not formally interviewed.

The players told The Herald Sun that they deny any criminal wrongdoing and sources said they were “shocked” by the allegation of sexual assault.

On Tuesday morning, Victoria Police issued a statement saying that the investigation remains ongoing.

That night the Swans banned the involved players for the rest of the season following a board meeting and interviews with the players.

“Any further sanctions or decisions regarding the outcome of the police investigation would take place after that process is completed.” 

The statement said: “The Sydney Swans condemn all forms of abuse and disrespectful behaviour towards women. Any conduct that causes offence or harm to others is unacceptable and falls well short of our expectations. All women deserve to be respected and feel safe.”

“The Sydney Swans hold all players and staff at the Club to high standards of behaviour and personal conduct. Representing this Club carries significant responsibilities both on and off the field, and we expect those standards to be upheld at all times,” it continued.

Unlike the NRL, the AFL does not have a stand down policy if players are accused of illegal behaviour. 

The following day, the involved Swans players released an apology.

“We are deeply sorry to everyone involved. We know that our behaviour has fallen well short of the standards expected of us and the values of our Club,” the apology wrote.

“We accept the Club sanction and apologise for the impact this has had on those involved … Our focus will now be on rebuilding trust with the Club and the community.”

Distorting Alleged Harm as On-Field Inconvenience

On Channel Seven's Agenda Setters, former Port Adelaide player and sport journalist, Kane Cornes, spoke on the issue from a “football point of view”, focusing his anger on the players’ lack of consideration for their teammates.

"[Jake] Lloyd's played in four losing grand finals, Heeney himself has played in three … You'd think it would mean a bit more to Isaac Heeney ... on the eve of a finals series and put your teammates and your team in jeopardy," he said.

On Fox Footy, Garry Lyon, former Melbourne Demons captain and current football media personality, decided to “only really comment on the one side and that is football-related matters”.

"The rest will sort themselves out and again, that's not to dismiss all parties involved in this, so let's get that on the table," he said.

“They deserve innocence until proven otherwise and we understand there’s an investigation. (But) they’ve been a pillar on this game.”

Fellow AFL 360 co-host Gerard Whateley chose to point to balancing the club’s reputation and success.

“Sydney, with that revered culture and the reputation they have forged in their community and football more broadly, has this agonised choice potentially between that—all they stand for—and a premiership quest, which has them sitting in second place one week out from finals,” he said.

Swans chief executive Matthew Pavlich said on the day of the incident that the club will be undertaking its own internal inquiries.

"Safe to say, we're extremely shocked and disappointed that this has taken place and that the players have found themselves in this situation," he continued.

Shifting the Conversation

Amongst talks about what this incident means for the game, many commentators are emphasising the importance of shifting the narrative back to the centre of the story—the woman potentially harmed by the alleged assault.

Speaking to The Herald Sun, Former AFLW player and sports commentator Felicity Harley has criticised the language and tone used by the media and AFL figures alike when addressing the incident.

“Is there really any surprise that women within the industry experience such horrific misogyny when the role models or people in positions of power like CEOs of clubs use language saying that the ‘players found themselves in this situation’,” she said.

“When allegations of this seriousness arose, and our immediate conversation becomes ‘what does this mean for finals?’, I think we need to ask ourselves what message that sends to women. Football cannot always be the most important thing in the room.”

Network 10 journalist, Rebeka Powell, spoke out on Instagram, emphasising, “regardless of the outcome of this investigation, there is a woman who has now found herself at the centre of an incredibly public and difficult situation.” 

She also said that this incident should be a reminder that journalists should conduct their work with “empathy, professionalism and humanity” and to “never lose sight of the individual at the centre of a story when so much noise surrounds them”.

Famous football journalist, Lauren Wood, highlighted that the ramifications this incident will have on the Sydney players is only “part of the issue” and that the “heart of the issue” should fall with the alleged victim.

“No one yet knows the facts, only the allegations that have been made. It is worth noting, and I know others have made this point today, that one in five Australian women over the age of 15 will experience sexual violence in their lifetime … they are really stark statistics, and really goes to the heart of this issue—particularly in Australian society,” she said on Fox Footy. 

AFL’s chief executive, Andrew Dillon, said the incident has broader ramifications beyond the game and the club.

“Our first question should not be what this means for a football club. It should be whether our actions match the standards we stand for and the community expects of us,” he said, “sexual assault allegations are serious, regardless of who is involved, what time of year it is, or what they may mean for a season.”

With the lack of institutional accountability structures and the prevalence of a “boy’s first” mentality, this incident reveals that the AFL must do more when it comes to its approach to serious allegations as a league and community.