Footy star turned Seven commentator Abbey Holmes takes a VERY controversial stance on Jeremy Finlayson’s punishment for anti-gay slur

AFLW great Abbey Holmes has said the homophobic insults from footy star Jeremy Finlayson and coach Alastair Clarkson cannot be compared as debate rages over the vastly different punishments handed out to the pair.

Finlayson has been suspended for three weeks and ordered to attend and pay for a Pride In Sport training program after using the disgraceful term ‘f****t’ to describe an Essendon player in last Friday night’s match .

The punishment came just over a month after North Melbourne coach Clarkson was fined $20,000 and given a two-match suspended ban for allegedly targeting St Kilda with the slur ‘c**ks**kers’ defensemen Jimmy Webster and Dougal Howard during a pre-match. season game.

Finlayson has been suspended for three games for his outburst and could have been given more timeout had he not quickly apologized last Friday night

Clarkson was only handed a conditional ban despite the premeditation of his slur against two St Kilda players in pre-season

The AFL Players Association has joined many experts and fans in condemning the league for having a double standard and not doing enough to stamp out homophobia in the game.

Holmes – who commentates on AFL matches for Channel Seven – disagreed with that view when asked about the scandal on Sunrise on Thursday morning.

“I think these two incidents themselves are very different – ​​very different situations and circumstances,” she told host Matt Shirvington.

“I like that the AFL has come out and given this three-match ban… they will not accept or tolerate homophobic comments or attacks under any circumstances.

“I think it’s fair to Jeremy Finlayson and when the AFLPA has come out and said there’s a double standard, you have to look at these incidents in isolation, in isolation.

‘They are very, very different. You can’t compare one or the other.’

Unlike Holmes, the head of the AFL Players Association believes the penalties represent a double standard that is damaging to the game.

Holmes’ comments are similar to those made by Port Adelaide chairman David Koch, who was criticized for saying Clarkson’s case was a benchmark for how the league punishes anti-gay slurs.

“If you look at comparisons, and there are benchmarks to be set, where a 55-year-old coach, with premeditation, focuses on the player and walks up to him, it’s very different from a player in the heat of the moment, when there were a lot of flaws in the game, the pressure – again, absolutely no excuse, I don’t condone it,” Koch said.

While Koch insisted that Finlayson avoid a suspension, Holmes did not. But she is at odds with the players’ association, football experts and fans who believe the AFL has sent a shocking message by not banning Clarkson.

High-profile sports commentators, including Damien Barrett and Ashleigh Nelson, have criticized the league for employing a double standard.

Port Adelaide chairman David Koch (pictured) was criticized when he claimed the incidents involving Clarkson and Finlayson were ‘very different’ as he pleaded for the Power star to avoid a suspension

There has been speculation that the league felt that the term Finlayson used was worse than the term Clarkson said when the penalty was imposed.

‘If this type of behavior is a three week sanction for a player, this should apply to everyone involved in the game and this should be made clear to everyone in the industry in advance, rather than the open approach currently is used. said AFLPA boss Paul Marsh.

Commentators on social media have lashed out at the disparity in the AFL’s penalties.

“Maybe for once the AFL could say they made one mistake. Admit Clarkson’s was soft and set a new precedent with Finlayson. He deserves to have the book thrown at him and as fans we need to see the AFL align with society’s expectations,” one supporter tweeted.

‘Last month, Alastair Clarkson was fined $20,000 and given a two-match ban for the same offence, despite having committed a host of offences. Rules for some and rules for others?’ another wrote.

Holmes (pictured during a recent match with Hollywood star Jeremy Piven) thinks Finlayson’s suspension sends the right message about the league’s attitude to homophobia

‘This makes Clarkson’s suspension earlier in the season very bad. Finlayson’s penalty is spot on, but what Clarkson got isn’t good enough.’

Geelong great Joel Selwood weighed in on the furor on Wednesday night, saying he worries the scandal will make it less likely the AFL will finally have an openly gay player.

Although he said the player who featured in today’s match would be ‘OK within the football club’, he believes the competition is ‘probably further away now because people might see it differently.

“That person who may be homosexual within the AFL men’s program landscape is not comfortable with that (since the Finlayson issue).”