A woman who made allegations of sexual assault against Sydney Swans players was upset at a breach of her personal boundaries, during an incident in a Melbourne hotel room.
The Herald Sun is reporting the woman was overheard in the lobby of the Pullman Hotel where the players were staying early on Monday, telling hotel and club staff that she had been “inappropriately touched”.
She was visibly and audibly upset, the Herald Sun said.
Victoria Police on Tuesday morning provided an updated into their investigation of “a report of a sexual assault” in East Melbourne.
“The exact circumstances are yet to be established and the investigation into the incident remains ongoing,” the police statement said.
“Police spoke to a number of people at the hotel, however no one has been arrested or formally interviewed at this time.
“Anyone with information about the matter is urged to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000 or submit a confidential report at www.crimestoppersvic.com.au.”
It is understood players Isaac Heeney, Chad Warner, James Jordon and Riley Bice have been spoken to by police, but none has been formally interviewed, arrested or charged with any offence.
The manager of a fifth player said his client had declined to speak with police.
Earlier on Tuesday, Swans head coach Dean Cox broke his silence following the sensational revelation of the police investigation.
As he arrived at Swans HQ on Tuesday morning, Cox said the club was “working (its) way through everything with the AFL and relevant parties” after he was asked whether players would face sanctions
“We’ll update when we get more information,” Cox said.
No players have been arrested or charged.
When asked if he had spoken to the players interviewed about the incident, Cox said the club would “speak as the day unfolds”.
All five players are believed to have driven back to Sydney in a rental car on Monday night.
Swans chief executive Matthew Pavlich said he was “shocked” and “disappointed” to hear the news on Monday afternoon, which surfaced less than 24 hours after the Swans’ convincing 112-76 victory against Essendon.
“We can confirm that several players were involved in an alleged incident last night in Melbourne,” Pavlich said.
“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.”
Swans captain Callum Mills remained tight-lipped as he arrived at Swans HQ on Tuesday morning, telling reporters he “can’t comment” on the matter.
“I can’t really comment. It’s an investigation ongoing, and we don’t have the facts yet so I can’t really comment,” he said.
“Once everything is sort of sorted and the facts are being understood we can comment, but until then we can’t make any comments.”
AFL Players Association chief executive James Gallagher said he felt a “sick feeling in (his) stomach” when he was told of the incident.
“Obviously surprise is the first immediate reaction but what I do know is that there’s really serious allegations at play here,” he said.
“The police process was the priority yesterday, quite rightly … “But we’ll learn more I think inevitably what happens is we will learn more of exactly what happened in coming days.”
Gallagher said standing down players typically only happens when a player has been charged with a crime in the NRL, but did not specify if AFL rules were the same.
“I think what we’ve got here at the moment are allegations, and so part of ti is understanding exactly what’s happened and understanding that as best as possible,” he said.
“That can sometimes take time, but we should take the time to properly understand it.”
AFL legend Peter Daicos said he were “shocked” by the allegations.
“Well I’m like everyone, Nat, I think yeah look definitely shocked. But again, you know not knowing a lot about the details,” Daicos told Nat Barr on Sunrise.
“So yeah look it’ll play out and I’m sure in the next in the coming days we’ll find out what has gone on.
“But yeah, it’s clearly a distraction that, you know, a lot of people don’t want.”
Lions coach Chris Fagan said the Swans scandal was a “reminder” to AFL players about their behaviour.
“The whole thing is just a good reminder to every AFL player at every club about the standards of behaviour that we’re expecting.”