Sydney Swans CEO Matthew Pavlich says he will not ‘abandon’ investigated players

Sydney Swans chief executive Matthew Pavlich says the club is “not abandoning” the five players who have been hit with season-ending suspensions for a breach of standards.

Riley Bice, Nick Blakey, Isaac Heeney, James Jordon and Chad Warner are embroiled in a Victoria Police investigation after claims of an alleged sexual incident in the early hours of Monday.

Pavlich said the players had been punished for staying out late, drinking and inviting women back to the hotel rather than because of the police investigation, which was separate.

The incident occurred at a Melbourne hotel after Sydney defeated Essendon at the MCG on Sunday.

The players are ineligible for senior selection but Pavlich said they would be allowed back into the club when asked if they were allowed to take part in training.

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

“Just to be clear, they will not be considered for AFL selection for the remainder of the season including finals but they will be allowed back at the football club.”

Pavlich was methodical in each of his answers, jumping to reply at just one.

“There’s a lot of mistruths, as well. Can I just be really clear on a couple of things?” Pavlich said.

“All five players have not been formally interviewed by police and no charges have been laid whatsoever.

“There’s a lot of mistruths out there, which we’re trying to manage as best we can. I just want to be clear on that.

“There are issues related to the police matter that we can’t talk about but I just want to make that crystal clear.”

On Tuesday, Pavlich fronted the media for less than a minute, offering a brief statement and not taking any questions.

On Wednesday he answered questions alongside Sydney chairman Andrew Pridham.