Swan pulled from AFL side amid alleged tension with teammate

The wild reason for Swans forward Sam Wicks’ omission from Sunday’s clash with Richmond has been explained.

Sam Wicks isn’t part of the Swans side in Melbourne. Photo by Phil Hillyard

It’s been revealed Swans forward Sam Wicks’ omission from Sunday’s clash with Richmond is due to an alleged dispute between him and a teammate.

As reported by SEN’s Sam Edmund, the 24-year-old was falsely accused of acting untoward with the former girlfriend of a Swans player.

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All parties involved were found to be innocent by the club after an internal investigation, after details of the dispute came to light on a recent night out.

His omission from the Round 3 match was decided upon by club officials to prevent further angst in the dressing rooms while emotions were high.

“Wicks had been accused of acting inappropriately with the former girlfriend of another Swans player,” Edmund said on SEN’s Crunch Time on Saturday morning.

Wicks had played two matches for the Swans this season. (Photo by Mark Metcalfe/AFL Photos/via Getty Images)

“A thorough club investigation found that those allegations were categorically false, and that Wicks nor his teammate had done anything wrong.

“While all parties were ultimately innocent, the bad blood, which was brought into the open on a night out involving a group of Sydney players, had threatened to fester in the changerooms.

“As a result of that, Swans officials acted swiftly to take the heat out of the situation by giving Wicks some time off. He didn’t travel with teammates to Melbourne today – instead he’s back in Sydney.”

Wicks didn’t line up for the Swans in their match against Richmond’s VFL side at Punt Road, instead staying in Sydney for the weekend.

Wicks isn’t part of the Sydney side competing against Richmond at the MCG. (Photo by Quinn Rooney/Getty Images)

The half-forward has had a solid start to the 2024 season, forcing his way into the starting 22 after two energetic performances as the sub in Opening Round and Round 1.

“That’s up to the coaches and those that are above my salary,” Swans recruit James Jordon said when asked by Channel 9 why Wicks wasn’t playing at any level this weekend.

Wicks, who was drafted as a Category B rookie in 2018, has played 53 games at the club and kicked 36 goals.

He signed a two-year contract extension last November and is contracted at the Swans until at least the end of 2025.

Foxfooty.com.au contacted Sydney for comment.

Originally published as Swan pulled from AFL side amid alleged tension with teammate