After a week of pain, the healing begins for the Swans and their supporters

For the past week, shattered supporters of the Sydney Swans have been processing their complicated feelings, digesting their mixed emotions, trying to figure out where to put all these broken, jagged little pieces.

On Sunday, the best answer anyone’s come up with thus far presented itself at the SCG: here . Put it here . Bring it all to the ground and we’ll sort through it together.

In times of trauma, it can help to be with other people. So, on a glorious Sydney afternoon, the broad church that is the Swans’ fan base – sad, angry, hurt, confused, bemused – congregated at its usual location to do what it usually does, unsure if it would still be like it usually is.

Were it not for the news that rocked their world on Monday, when the first reports emerged of the night of debauchery that took place at the Pullman in East Melbourne, this all would have been so straightforward.

On Thursday, five AFL players – Isaac Heeney, Chad Warner, Nick Blakey, Riley Bice and James Jordon – were suspended for the rest of the season for “breaching club standards”. A separate police investigation continues into an alleged sexual assault.

The Swans’ first AFLW-AFL(M) double-header at home on Sunday was both an unremarkably normal and singularly bizarre experience.

Once the footy began, it felt like practically any other afternoon in the before times. The sights, sounds and smells were all familiar – except for the traditional quarter-time rendition of Sweet Caroline , a beloved Swans ritual that was dropped without explanation.

In the morning, scores of hopeful media roved around Driver Avenue anticipating a frenzy. Fans who came for the 12.30pm start of the AFLW’s round two fixture between the Swans and Essendon were greeted by reporters asking them to explain their decision to turn up, and if they intended to stick around for the men’s game later in the day.

This was sporting attendance (and departure) as political statement. Not everyone who arrived early or left between games was making one – but many seized their opportunity to do exactly that, holding aloft cardboard signs bearing messages they would then happily unpack in front of a camera and microphone.

“Come down here for some wholesome footy,” a Sydney Roosters fan was heard quipping to them, as he made his way to the NRL double-header next door at Allianz Stadium. It’s amazing how quickly the world changes.

The official crowd for Sydney’s 24-point AFLW win was 16,672 – more than double their previous record, and a clear show of support by the public for a team that was among the week’s indirect victims. Chloe Molloy celebrated a goal by making a “W” with her hands. One supporter had a banner confiscated, but only because it was hung over the sponsor boards. It read: “No more dickheads, please.”

“The best way to go about today was to win, really,” said captain Lucy McEvoy. “The girls knew that. To give our members and fans a little bit of joy ... we felt obliged to do that for them and be that beacon for us as a football club.”

What followed in the interval was not a mass walkout, as had been feared.