Sydney Swans Omit 'Pullman Five' from 2027 Calendar After Hotel Incident
Five players suspended for breaching club standards are absent from the team's annual calendar.
All five Sydney Swans players involved in the August hotel incident have been excluded from the club's 2027 calendar, marking a notable absence for the group who were suspended for the remainder of the 2026 season.
Isaac Heeney, Chad Warner, Nick Blakey, James Jordon, and Riley Bice do not appear in the lineup of 12 players chosen to represent the club in the upcoming year. This decision comes as the fallout from the incident at the Pullman Hotel in East Melbourne continues, with Blakey's trade to North Melbourne now official.
The calendar features players such as Tom Papley for January, Errol Gulden for March, and captain Callum Mills for April. Brodie Grundy is set to represent the club in May, while other players like Charlie Curnow, Braeden Campbell, James Rowbottom, Logan McDonald, Justin McInerney, Jake Lloyd, Malcolm Rosas, and Tom McCartin are also included.
The specific reasons for the players' omissions from the calendar, and whether they are directly linked to their club-imposed suspensions, have not been confirmed. The suspensions were separate from a police investigation into sexual assault allegations, which reportedly still involved Heeney, Warner, Blakey, and Jordon as of the latest reports. Bice was reportedly cleared of criminal wrongdoing, with no charges laid.
The absence of Heeney and Warner, two of the Swans' prominent players, from the calendar is particularly striking. Heeney, in particular, recently secured his third consecutive Bob Skilton Medal, despite missing the end of the season. He accepted the award via a video message, apologizing for the impact of his actions on the club and expressing determination to return for the 2027 season.
Prior to the calendar's release, the five players also opted not to attend the club's awards night on October 1. Swans chairman Andrew Pridham had previously defended the players' inclusion in the Brownlow Medal count, stating that their on-field performances were separated from their conduct leading to suspensions. He argued that retrospectively removing votes would have constituted excessive punishment.