Swans star Chad Warner explains how he got through ‘revenge porn’ scandal

Chad Warner has opened up on how he dealt with the nude photo leak scandal that threatened to derail his season, with the youngster’s Sydney teammates astonished by his cool temperament.

Last month, a ‘revenge porn attack’ saw images and videos of the Swans star performing sex acts emerged on social media, with the 21-year-old at the peak of his powers in the AFL.

The scandal would, in typical circumstances, have hit many young athletes for six and Warner admitted that he was initially unsettled when the photos and videos came to light.

However, in an interview with the Sydney Morning Herald, Warner has explained that he was able to quickly reset and focus on his game, with teammates rallying around him to help take the sting out of the scandal.

‘A lot of people kind of said I’ve handled it probably a bit better than they thought,’ he said. ‘I pretty much just saw it, and then at the time I was like … obviously it’s not great, something you don’t want to happen to you.

‘I guess I’m the type of person that just moves on from stuff anyway. At the time I had just had to move on from it, and so I didn’t let it affect me. There’s no point feeling sorry for yourself. You’ve just got to get on with business, and that’s what we did.’ 

Warner added that ‘the Bloods culture’ acted as a huge support system and has played a huge role in his development since arriving at the club two years ago. 

Photos and videos of the 21-year-old performing a sex act emerged on social media last month

He says his Swans teammates were shocked by his cool temperament after the scandal

‘As soon I stepped in the door here two years ago, I’ve felt it the whole time. They just give you a massive confidence to play your game and be not afraid to make mistakes. You’ve got a massive family vibe here, too, which is why I’m loving it here.’ 

Attention now turns to Friday night’s qualifying final against Melbourne, with 80,000 expected to embark on the MCG to watch the reigning premiers aim to move closer to defending their flag. 

Warner has never played in front of a crowd that size before, owing to the pandemic, and couldn’t hide his eagerness to show what he can do.

‘I can’t wait for it. Hopefully there is that many, all us boys will relish it, and there’s always a massive Melbourne [based] supporter base for Sydney, which is great for us.’