Adelaide Crows forward Izak Rankine has broken his silence after being suspended for using a homophobic slur, saying he is committed to regaining society's trust. An emotional Rankine returned to Australia on Tuesday night and fought back tears during a public apology at Adelaide Airport.
“Going away has given me space to reflect and educate myself to understand the weight of my mistake,” Rankine said. “I am fully committed to bettering myself. In the next few days I will be standing in front of my teammates and the AFLW and apologising to them personally – and they deserve this at the very least.”
The 25-year-old is the sixth AFL-listed player in 16 months to be banned for an on-field homophobic slur. He has served one game of his four-match suspension, with his only hope of playing again this season if the Crows lose Thursday night's qualifying final against Collingwood but then progress to the grand final.
Rankine said he was “in no way a victim” and expressed remorse for the slur directed at a Collingwood player on 16 August. “There was no excuse. It was wrong and I take full responsibility,” he said. “I understand that word was offensive, harmful, it's hurtful and has no place in our game or our society.”
Rankine had spent time in Italy to avoid the spotlight in Adelaide. The AFL initially decided on a five-game ban, but it was reduced to four due to “compelling medical submissions”, according to league chief executive Andrew Dillon. Rankine is not expected to attend Adelaide's last training session on Wednesday ahead of the qualifying final.
