Suspended players to foot their own legal bills under AFL rules
The five suspended Sydney Swans players will have to foot their own substantial legal fees for their role in the Pullman Hotel episode that is under police investigation.
Under AFL rules, the five players would have to pay their individual legal costs – not only for legal representation during the ongoing sexual assault investigation – but also for any civil lawsuits threatened by the women who were in the company of the five players in the early hours of August 17 in a hotel room.
Two AFL sources, speaking anonymously because of the police investigation, have confirmed that the rules governing the league’s salary cap do not allow the club, or people closely associated with the club, to foot the bill for any of the five players – Isaac Heeney, Chad Warner, Nick Blakey, James Jordon and Riley Bice. The five are under club suspension for breaching the Swans’ behavioural standards for the remainder of this season, with police having cleared Bice of any criminal wrongdoing.
This masthead previously reported all five denied criminal wrongdoing, and no charges have been laid.
The AFL Players’ Association has provided some support for the players, but cannot financially contribute to their legal costs.
The bills facing four of the players – police are treating Bice only as a witness – would escalate if they reach settlements with the women, who have engaged lawyers and indicated they would potentially seek compensation.
Settlements, too, cannot be covered by the club under the AFL’s rules for the salary cap.
Each of the five players has engaged his own lawyer to handle the investigation.
The strict AFL rules on paying for players’ legal costs also prohibit a wealthy club benefactor – if they have a clear connection to the club – footing the legal bills.
Separately, the Swans are undecided on whether the suspended players will be eligible for votes and awards in the club best and fairest.
The AFL has banned them from attending the Brownlow count during grand final week but they are still eligible to win it.
The AFL may not reach a position on whether the five players can be traded during the October trade period.
In effect this might leave that decision, and the associated risks, with the clubs who entertain trading for any of them. The Swans have not guaranteed their positions with the club next year, as they wait for the police investigation to take its course.
The AFL declined to comment on its position on any potential trades.
Blakey, as reported in this masthead, has told associates that he could entertain a move to another club as a result of dissatisfaction with how he has been handled in the scandal.
The police have indicated a timeline for the investigation suggesting that it is not likely to be completed before the trade period, saying last week they did not expect to provide another update for eight weeks. This creates a challenge for any parties considering a trade for any of the four (with Bice now excluded).
The five players were not present at their team’s stunning 53-point upset of the Brisbane Lions on Saturday, when it also emerged that Victoria Police had seized an audio recording from a Melbourne home detailing events at the centre of the alleged sexual assaults investigation.
As reported in this masthead, a source close to the investigation, but not authorised to comment publicly, said the recording was made in the days following the alleged incident in a room at the Pullman East Melbourne hotel in the early hours of Monday, August 17.
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Jake Niall is a Walkley award-winning sports journalist and chief AFL writer for The Age.Connect via X or email.