Richmond denies players alluded to Sydney Swans scandal

Australian football club Richmond said its players did not refer to recent events involving the Sydney Swans and did not try to downplay their seriousness during a post-season gathering. Videos from the event at a country pub in Victoria prompted such speculation after they were filmed by media representatives.

The club's position

As ABC News Australia reports, one video showed a player pretending to be surprised after a teammate hit him on the buttocks. Another clip showed a footballer hitting a teammate on the back with a belt. Richmond said it had spoken with the players, who expressed embarrassment over their behaviour. According to the club, those at the gathering insist that their actions were not a reference to recent events and were not intended to mock them.

Richmond finished the season second from bottom with three wins and 20 losses.

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Reaction from the venue and the AFL

The Garfield Hotel pub, located 80 kilometres east of Melbourne, said on social media that the situation had been excessively blown out of proportion. The venue said the players had booked the entire pub for the afternoon and were its only visitors. Garfield Hotel representatives described the team as extremely respectful and said the footballers had a few beers while relaxing after the season. The pub also said that media representatives had waited for the players in the hope of catching them making a mistake.

The videos emerged hours after AFL chief executive Andrew Dillon spoke about the scandal involving the Sydney Swans. He said respect for women was non-negotiable and that the actions of the five suspended Swans players did not meet the league's standards or public expectations. Dillon also called for care and respect to be shown to the women who had gone to the police.