Rugby league player banned for 6 matches over homophobic slur in Australian competition

SYDNEY (AP) — A professional rugby league player has been suspended for six matches after pleading guilty to making a homophobic comment in Australia's second-tier competition last week.

Newcastle Knights forward Asu Kepaoa, who has played 42 National Rugby League matches with West Tigers, was sent off in the Knights' reserve-grade win over St. George-Illawarra in the New South Wales Cup.

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Kepaoa's sanction was announced only weeks after former Sydney Roosters prop Kane Evans became the second male NRL player to come out as gay, and first since the 1990s.

Kepaoa issued a personal apology in acknowledging the harm caused by his choice of words.

He is yet to make his senior debut for the Knights since his moving to the club, about a two-hour drive north of Sydney, from the Penrith Panthers.

"The Newcastle Knights are an inclusive club and pride ourselves on being a welcoming place for all players, staff and supporters," the Knights said in statement released Wednesday. "Language that causes harm to individuals or communities has no place in our club, in the NRL, or in our community."

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The sanction is the latest on similar charges in Australian sports leagues. While playing for the New Zealand Warriors' NRL side in 2022, Marcelo Montoya received a four-game ban for a homophobic slur.

Max Knobel, Koby Evans, Izak Rankine and Lance Collard were among the Australian rules football players suspended over homophobic comments in recent seasons.

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