AFL CEO Andrew Dillon has confirmed that the five Sydney Swans players who’ve been suspended for the rest of the season — Isaac Heeney, Chad Warner, Nick Blakey, Riley Bice and James Jordon — will be banned from attending the Brownlow Medal count. However, they still will be eligible to win the prestigious award.
“The invitations to the Brownlow will be going out this week. Those players won’t be invited,” Dillon told reporters on Monday, per The Age.
“They are still eligible for the Brownlow, but they’re under a club suspension, which goes until the end of the season.”
The confirmation comes days after the Club confirmed sanctions on the players who reportedly spoke to police after an alleged sexual assault in Melbourne that took place after their victory over Essendon in the early hours of August 17.
“Sydney Swans players Riley Bice, Nick Blakey, Isaac Heeney, James Jordon and Chad Warner will not be considered for selection for the remainder of the 2026 AFL Season,” Sydney Swans shared in a statement, published on August 19.
“The AFL is supportive of the Club’s sanctions,” it added before sharing that the sanctions were “independent” of Victoria Police’s investigation.
Alongside the ban from the Brownlows, the AFL CEO said they would be waiting for Victoria Police’s investigation to finish before they begin their own enquiries.
“Don’t want to get ahead of the police investigation, but there is the potential (for more punishments) if more information comes to light,” Dillon said.
“The Swans have taken action, with the support of the AFL, based on what is known now and there’s been accountability for those players involved last week.”
Shortly after their suspensions, the players released a joint statement, sharing they were “deeply sorry to everyone involved”.
“We know that our behaviour has fallen well short of the standards expected of us and the values of our Club,” they said.
“We know we have let down our partners and families, members, supporters, teammates, the AFLW team, corporate partners and everyone at the Club and in the wider community.
“We accept the Club sanction and apologise for the impact this has had on those involved.”
PEDESTRIAN.TV has reached out to representatives of Heeney, Warner, Jordon, Blakey and Bice for comment.
The Brownlows is an annual sporting ceremony which recognises the best and fairest AFL players of the season. This year’s event is set to take place this September.
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