Sydney chairman Andrew Pridham has accused the AFL of lying over the circumstances which led to the imposition of the controversial trade ban on the club, and urged the league to immediately lift the "senseless sanction".

In an explosive pre-game address prior to Friday night's match against Collingwood, Pridham labelled the trade restrictions placed on the Swans as "unconstitutional", a "serious restraint of trade" and having "serious consequences" for the integrity of the competition.

Marquee signings: Lance Franklin and Kurt Tippett. Credit:Getty Images

Pridham angrily disputed the AFL's continued claims that the Swans had received prior warning of the ban, describing such assertions as "simply untrue".

He said the explanation that the trade ban was linked to the phasing out of the cost of living allowance was false, saying he had been told by several AFL commissioners it was in response to the signing of Kurt Tippett and Lance Franklin in consecutive trade periods.