Before any one of us writes or talks about the AFL case again, let's put at the centre the woman or women who were allegedly sexually assaulted.

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Let's also focus on the partners of those who've been accused. The women who work at the Swans. The Swans AFLW team. The fans who are women.

Because I'll tell you who didn't think about any of that when they started behaving like buffoons at 3am last Monday.

Five blokes. Five blokes who, until last Monday, were players I thought were absolutely awesome. Well, three of them anyway.

They'd just played an outstanding game against Essendon and I was filled with hope that this year, the Swans would come good in the finals.

Instead, they've become very bad. They stink.

If by some miracle, you missed this story, here's how it played out. Allegedly.

The Swans played that cracker of a game on Sunday. It was truly gripping. Then on Monday, news that Victoria Police were investigating sexual assault allegations at East Melbourne's Pullman Hotel. No formal interviews have taken place and no charges laid. At this stage.

Let's acknowledge all that without making excuses. If these women are sex workers, they also deserve safety.

If these women drank too much, they also deserve safety.

No matter what women do for a living, what they wear, what they drink or take, they deserve safety.

Please, also, let's not diminish this in any way because these are men we once admired. I'm pretty pleased Colgate's dumped Heeney. Telstra did the same.

I also love that our Governor-General Sam Mostyn weighed in. After all, this is a national sport with a formerly beloved team. Mostyn was on the board of directors at the Swans, and an AFL commissioner.

"At times like this, we are reminded to never take for granted the........

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