Swans chief executive Matthew Pavlich says the club is “deeply embarrassed and ashamed” over the “poor choices” made by five players suspended for their behaviour at a Melbourne hotel.

Sydney announced on Wednesday that players Riley Bice, Nick Blakey, Isaac Heeney, James Jordon and Chad Warner will not be considered for selection for the rest of the season after breaching club standards.

“We respect that this is an ongoing investigation by Victoria Police, and the actions we’ve taken today are totally independent of this,” Pavlich told reporters.

“We arrived at this sanction after our own internal inquiries with the five players and other parties.”

The sanctions come amid a police investigation into sexual assault allegations at East Melbourne’s Pullman Hotel, where the Swans stayed on Sunday night after their win over Essendon at the MCG.

No formal interviews have taken place and no charges have been laid, nor is it suggested any of the players are accused of sexual assault.

 

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The club revealed on Tuesday that it was holding an emergency meeting after its own separate inquiries found players were in “serious breach of expected club behaviour and standards”.

Pavlich said at Wednesday’s press conference that the player behaviour referred to included staying out late, drinking, “continuing their night” and “bringing women back to the hotel”.

“To say we are disappointed is an understatement,” he said.

“We are deeply embarrassed and ashamed that the poor choices of five of our players, and the impact that’s had on the women involved, and also the club, our supporters and so many other people.”

The AFL has let Sydney handle internal punishments for breaches of club standards, but the Swans said it was supportive of the sanctions.

Matthew Pavlich says the player sanctions followed the club’s own internal inquiries. Photo: AAP

Sydney chairman Andrew Pridham also apologised on Wednesday, saying the club’s thoughts went out to everybody who had been impacted by the event, “and we know it’s impacted many, many people”.

“There’s deep disappointment within the club at what has occurred and we know that many people are hurting and we are providing support to our players, to their partners, to as many people (as) we can,” he said, adding that the players involved were “extremely remorseful”.

Pridham said the fact that the club had effectively “torpedoed” its premiership chances by banning five players showed how seriously it was taking the matter.

Heeney, Warner and Blakey are among Sydney’s most important players, while Bice and Jordon have played key roles during the past two seasons and are regulars in the senior team.

“The fact that we’ve got to the place where we are today, and we’ve effectively suspended the players for the balance of season when we’re heading into a final series, just tells you how seriously we’ve taken it,” Pridham said.

“The only way we can deal with it is to put our foot down incredibly hard, which we’ve done.

“A very important point to make that we, as a football club, that is our business and to effectively torpedo our season by making decisions just tells you how serious we’re taking it.”

Whether the AFL bars the suspended five players from contention for All Australian honours – Heeney, Warner and Blakey are contenders – rests with the AFL.

Because of the controversy, the AFL has already delayed releasing the initial 40-man squad ahead of naming the final 23-strong team.

Heeney was also expected to be among the leaders in Brownlow medal voting, but he and his banned teammates are unlikely to attend the annual function for the league’s best-and-fairest player award.

While the five players won’t be eligible for selection again this season, they will be invited back to the club at an appropriate time.

“We’re not abandoning our players,” Pavlich said. “We are supporting our players through this really challenging time for them.”

AFL chief executive Andrew Dillon on Tuesday released a statement calling for more respect around the allegations.

Dillon said the allegations and the conduct of the Swans players were “deeply concerning”.

“While the matter remains under police investigation, it raises broader issues for our game and our responsibilities as a sport,” Dillon said.

“The woman who made the report to police is entitled to privacy and care, and that should be respected.”

1800 RESPECT (1800 737 732)

National Sexual Abuse and Redress Support Service 1800 211 028

–with AAP