St Kilda first-year player Lance Collard banned for six matches for using homophobic slurs in a VFL game

AFL chief executive Andrew Dillon is adamant the league doesn't have a homophobia problem despite St Kilda teenager Lance Collard becoming the third player to be suspended over the issue this year.

Collard will serve a six-game ban after being investigated for directing "unprompted and highly offensive homophobic slurs" towards two Williamstown opponents in a VFL game.

The 19-year-old forward directed the abuse when appearing for St Kilda's VFL affiliate Sandringham on Saturday.

Collard has played three senior games since drafted by St Kilda at pick number 28 last year, and the ban ends any hope of him featuring in the AFL again this season.

The Saints have been involved in an annual Pride Game against Sydney since 2017.

In a statement put out by St Kilda, Collard apologised for his actions.

"I am incredibly remorseful for my comments and any hurt they may have caused," Collard said

"I'm disappointed in myself and fully accept the consequences for my behaviour.

"What I did doesn't represent my values, or the values of the club. I have apologised to the Williamstown players who were impacted by my behaviour, and unreservedly reiterate that apology to anyone else my conduct affected."

St Kilda executive manager of football David Misson said there was no excuse for what Collard had said.

"At St Kilda we have a strong policy of supporting the person but challenging the behaviour. Lance's behaviour in this instance is totally unacceptable, but we will also be strong in our support and education for Lance.

"We have met with Lance and made sure he understands the seriousness of the situation and the depths to which comments of this nature can cause harm."

In May, Gold Coast defender Wil Powell was suspended for five games for directing a homophobic slur towards a Brisbane opponent.

Port Adelaide's Jeremy Finlayson was suspended for three games in April, and required to complete Pride in Sport training, for his homophobic verbal abuse of an Essendon player.

North Melbourne coach Alastair Clarkson was fined $20,000 and received a suspended two-game ban for his pre-season tirade towards St Kilda duo Jimmy Webster and Dougal Howard.

Clarkson was also required to complete Pride in Sport training.

Collard will also take part in this training, at his own cost.

AFL's Dillon warns of more severe penalties, AFLPA says they aren't working

When Dillon was asked whether the league had a homophobia problem, he replied: "No, I don't think we do. But I think language of the type that has been used is not acceptable in any forum, let alone the footy field."

Dillon warned players of more severe sanctions for homophobic slurs in future.

"You will see the sanctions increasing until we don't have it any more," Dillon told reporters in Perth on Wednesday.

"I think we've just got to continue to educate our players until we stamp it out.

"It hadn't been an issue for us for a long time, and we'll continue to educate and make sure that we can remove it from our game.

"I'm not sure (why there's been more cases of it this year) and that's something that we will probably dive a little bit deeper with, with the players and the Players Association to try and understand that."

The AFL Players Association did not agree with Dillon's view, however.

While the AFLPA said in a statement that there was no room for homophobia in the game, they again called for greater consistency and transparency in how the AFL sanctioned players.

"With multiple instances of homophobia occurring this season, the industry must work to consider the drivers of this behaviour and prioritise delivery of player education to raise awareness and understanding of homophobia and its impacts," acting CEO Regan Bunny said in the statement.

"It is clear that the approach of dealing harsher suspensions to players is not working."

After the Finlayson incident, Ian Roberts, Australian sport's most prominent gay rights advocate, called for the AFL to introduce more educational programs for players and officials.

"The governing bodies need to get out there at the grass-roots level and make it very clear that language like this can be so powerful," the openly gay rugby league great said in April.

"There'll be young people out there who are struggling with their sexual identity that probably wouldn't have heard many news items during the last couple of weeks, but they definitely heard that one.

"I do believe our best sword and shield in moving forward is education — I've been saying it for 30 years.

"There should be educational programs at the start of every year, or through the year, about this."

AAP/ABC