Trending
Discussions over the appropriate penalty to hand Crows star Izak Rankine for his alleged homophobic comment aimed at a Collingwood opponent during Saturday night’s match at Adelaide Oval led to the ban announcement being delayed until Wednesday.
The AFL’s investigation heard that byplay between Magpie defender Dan Houston and Rankine, which referenced an incident during last year’s Showdown when Rankine was concussed and then-Power star Houston suspended for five matches, may have led to a war of words between players from the two clubs.
Adelaide’s Izak Rankine celebrates a goal against Hawthorn on August 1.Credit: Getty Images
Two competition sources speaking on the condition of anonymity alleged that Rankine directed the slur “f—-t” towards a Magpies player during the tense match, however The Age is not suggesting the alleged insult was directed at Houston.
The AFL has been adamant since penalising Port Adelaide’s Jeremy Finalyson for three matches last season that use of that homophobic slur during matches is unacceptable.
The Crows will be given time to respond to any potential sanction by the league, which could be up to five matches based on previous penalties handed out after similar incidents. The Crows were still awaiting that communication late on Tuesday afternoon.
Rankine did not self-report the alleged comment to the Crows, but has reportedly shown his remorse since the AFL integrity department launched its investigation on Monday following communication on Sunday between the Magpies and Adelaide. This masthead confirmed Rankine rang his Collingwood opponent on Sunday to apologise.
The match-winning midfielder loomed as a trump card for the top-of-the-table Crows in this year’s finals series, but could be ruled out for the rest of the club’s season if he is suspended for four games or more. The Crows are hoping for a penalty that considers the significance of missing finals matches, as opposed to home and away games.
A suspension of four or five matches would be consistent with previous on-field matters of homophobic vilification investigated by the AFL. Gold Coast’s Wil Powell received a five-match suspension in 2024, and West Coast’s Jack Graham received a four-match ban after telling his club he had used the slur during a match against the Giants in July. In handing Graham four matches, the AFL considered Graham’s “self-reporting of the incident, along with his private apology and contrition”.
Discussions over the appropriate penalty to hand Crows star Izak Rankine for his alleged homophobic comment aimed at a Collingwood opponent during Saturday night’s match at Adelaide Oval led to the ban announcement being delayed until Wednesday.
The AFL’s investigation heard that byplay between Magpie defender Dan Houston and Rankine, which referenced an incident during last year’s Showdown when Rankine was concussed and then-Power star Houston suspended for five matches, may have led to a war of words between players from the two clubs.
Adelaide’s Izak Rankine celebrates a goal against Hawthorn on August 1.Credit: Getty Images
Two competition sources speaking on the condition of anonymity alleged that Rankine directed the slur “f—-t” towards a Magpies player during the tense match, however The Age is not suggesting the alleged insult was directed at Houston.
The AFL has been adamant since penalising Port Adelaide’s Jeremy Finalyson for three matches last season that use of that homophobic slur during matches is unacceptable.
The Crows will be given time to respond to any potential sanction by the league, which could be up to five matches based on previous penalties handed out after similar incidents. The Crows were still awaiting that communication late on Tuesday afternoon.
Rankine did not self-report the alleged comment to the Crows, but has reportedly shown his remorse since the AFL integrity department launched its investigation on Monday following communication on Sunday between the Magpies and Adelaide. This masthead confirmed Rankine rang his Collingwood opponent on Sunday to apologise.
The match-winning midfielder loomed as a trump card for the top-of-the-table Crows in this year’s finals series, but could be ruled out for the rest of the club’s season if he is suspended for four games or more. The Crows are hoping for a penalty that considers the significance of missing finals matches, as opposed to home and away games.
A suspension of four or five matches would be consistent with previous on-field matters of homophobic vilification investigated by the AFL. Gold Coast’s Wil Powell received a five-match suspension in 2024, and West Coast’s Jack Graham received a four-match ban after telling his club he had used the slur during a match against the Giants in July. In handing Graham four matches, the AFL considered Graham’s “self-reporting of the incident, along with his private apology and contrition”.
It is a long established fact that a reader will be distracted by the readable content of a page when looking at its layout. The point of using Lorem Ipsum is that it has a more-or-less normal distribution
The Us Media 2025
