The AFL is under fire after an appeal against Lance Collard’s seven week ban for using homophobic language during a VFL game was reduced down to just two weeks.
The Saint Kilda player was originally given a seven week ban, with two weeks suspended. It is the second time he’s faced officials over the offence, in 2024 he was given a six week ban.
In a statement the AFL said the two week ban would be served concurrently with another ban imposed on the player over a striking charge.
“Mr Collard’s sanction was reduced to a suspension of four weeks, of which two weeks are suspended until the end of the 2027 season, to be served cumulatively to the suspension that Collard received for a striking charge from the same match.” they said.
The AFL said they remained committed to tackling homophobia within the sport. Collard was accused of calling a player from a rival team a “f*****g f****t”, but he insists he actually said “come here maggot.”
The appeals board in their full judgement said using racist and homophobic language in AFL was commonplace due to the “highly competitive” nature of the game.
“We observe that football is a hard game. It is highly competitive, particularly at its higher levels. It is commonplace that players can employ language from time to time which is racist, sexist or homophobic whilst on the field,” it wrote.
“We observe that it’s to the credit of the AFL and the Tribunal that its efforts to eliminate these comments appear to be succeeding.”
Former AFLW player Kate McCarthy has shared her thoughts on the decision and questioned how it aligns with the league’s “zero tolerance” approach to homophobic comentary.
“This decision and this explanation of this decision go against everything that the AFL has claimed to stand for.
“This is disgusting.” McCarthy said in an Instagram post.
The appeals board also said the incident was less serious because the player the comment was directed at was not offended by being called a “f*****g f****t”.
Saint Kilda have said they are disappointed that the board did not dismiss the charge in its entirety, maintaining that Collard had been misheard. They also called on the AFL to implement clearer guidelines on what the punishment should be for insulting language during a game.
“The club remains focused on supporting Lance throughout what has been a challenging period and asks for his privacy as he makes his return to play.
“Despite the reduction in sanction, St Kilda remains disappointed with how the matter was assessed and believes greater consistency and clarity in the AFL’s Tribunal process is important moving forward.” the club said.
