Sydney coach Dean Cox has broken his silence after several Swans players were questioned over an alleged sexual assault in Melbourne.
As he arrived at the club’s headquarters on Tuesday morning, Cox gave a short statement to waiting reporters. “We are working our way through everything with the AFL and the relevant parties and will update when we get more information,” Cox said. “We will speak as the day unfolds.”
The alleged incident came after Sydney’s 36-point win over Essendon at the MCG on Sunday night. The Swans are second on the ladder and are due to face North Melbourne this weekend.
Victoria Police said on Monday afternoon: “Police are investigating a report of a sexual assault in East Melbourne on 17 August,” police media said. “The incident occurred at a hotel on Wellington Parade in the early hours of the morning. “The exact circumstances are yet to be established and the investigation into the incident remains ongoing”.
Police have asked for anyone with information to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000 or submit a confidential report at www.crimestoppersvic.com.au.
The Herald Sun first reported police had swarmed the club’s hotel in Melbourne, where players were staying after the match. Police were seen moving through the Pullman East Melbourne hotel on Wellington Parade on Monday. According to the report, as many as eight uniformed police officers carrying clipboards and cameras were at the venue on Sunday.
It has been reported Isaac Heeney, Chad Warner, James Jordon and Riley Bice were questioned by police over the alleged assault. The manager of a fifth player denied his client had spoken with authorities. There is no suggestion that the allegations are true, only that they have been made.
The club has also released statements confirming multiple players were involved in an alleged incident and is considering standing down the players allegedly involved.
A “shocked” and “disappointed” Swans CEO Matthew Pavlich briefly addressed media on Monday afternoon. “We can confirm that several players were involved in an alleged incident last night in Melbourne,” Mr Pavlich said in a statement on Monday afternoon. “We have identified this to the AFL and we are working with them and also the relevant authorities on this matter. “We are still piecing together exactly what has transpired here and we have our own internal inquiries ongoing. “It is safe to say we are extremely shocked and disappointed that this has taken place and that the players have found themselves in this situation,” he said. “We understand the level of interest in the matter. There is a lot of speculation but given it’s a police matter that is all we can actually say.”
Earlier, the club said: “The Sydney Swans can confirm several players were involved in an alleged incident in Melbourne last night”. “The Swans have notified the AFL and relevant authorities and cannot provide further comment at this stage.”
According to The Herald Sun, two women approached hotel staff at about 7am and demanded to be let back into one of the guest rooms. One of the women allegedly ran into the toilets crying before police arrived and was described as “hysterical” and “upset”. The two women were reportedly “agitated” in the lobby.
After staff told them they could not go back to the room, the women allegedly began remonstrating with Swans officials, including Cox. Before a third woman arrived at the hotel, Swans staff could reportedly be heard telling the two women they were unaware of an incident. A source said one woman told hotel staff: “We have everything recorded of what those AFL players did to our friend in that room”.
Leading football journalist Tom Morris reported three women were seen in the foyer on Monday morning confronting Sydney staff, including Cox. Morris later posted on X that the incident “could rock Sydney’s season”.
Channel 7 reported several players had gone for drinks at a bar in Richmond and alleged the gathering then continued back at the hotel.
SEN journalist Sam Edmund reported Swans players had been summoned to a team meeting.
AFL commentator Kane Cornes told Channel 7: “Incredible to think they would even put themselves in these positions”. “What the future holds for the players remains to be seen but if I was a teammate of one of those and it had the prospect of costing us potentially a premiership I’m not sure I’d ever forgive them”.
Heeney is engaged to long-time partner Steffanie Waters, while Warner is in a relationship with Alice Hughes. Neither partner is in any way involved in the alleged incident.
