'It's about saving lives': Ex-Wallabies prop Dan Palmer delivers society a wake-up call

Monash University expert Erik Denison says there is a major disconnect between perception and reality regarding the issue of homophobia in sport.

It comes following Palmer's column for the Sydney Morning Herald, in which he wrote his own death felt preferable to anyone discovering he was gay, such was the battle the former ACT Brumbies prop fought with himself, as well as cultural and societal influences.

It took Palmer, who will be on board with the Brumbies in a coaching capacity next season, 25 years to come out - adamant he wanted to be judged on what he did as a player rather than who he was, although he maintains he never felt discriminated against in a rugby environment.

Denison says research suggests homophobic language is rife in grassroots sporting environments, with suicide rates among homosexual kids up to four times higher than a heterosexual.

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"We look at this as a public health issue, and that's where Dan's story is really helpful. It highlights why this is a public health issue," Denison said.

"It's not just a social justice issue, it's literally about saving the lives of kids. We need to stop these kids from killing themselves.

"Basically if you have a room of 10 kids, three or four of them would have attempted suicide in the past year if they're gay, whereas only about one of them would have if they were straight. That's quite alarming. If you're trans or gender diverse, it's about half of the population.

"Sport is the prime site for them to experience discrimination. This language is constant. Imagine being an Indigenous person, and hearing someone use the n-word. Terms like 'fag' or 'queer', they have the same effect on these kids.

"No wonder this is the first gay Wallaby to come out, and he didn't come out while he was playing. It comes down to translating this goodwill within the sport to the grassroots. There's a disconnect.

"When it comes down to the community level or grassroots sport, homophobic language is rife. It doesn't matter whether we did the research in Australia, Canada, the UK, the results are almost identical.

"More than half of adolescent rugby players say they have used homophobic language in the past two weeks, and about three fourths have heard teammates use this language."

Rugby union was in the spotlight during the Israel Folau saga. Denison says the Brumbies, NSW Waratahs and Rugby Australia have been on the front foot regarding homophobia, yet "this hasn't translated into changes at community level".

Denison says the tide is turning in rugby union, with many among the sport adamant they are creating inclusive environments. Denison labels this "the Pocock effect".

"There is a lot of will within the rugby community, and David Pocock should get a lot of credit for that because he was such a strong force within the sport," Denison said.

"Pocock has been campaigning on this issue and he normalised it. The sky didn't fall. It became part of the rugby identity, to be pro-gay."

Pocock and former Wallabies captain Stephen Moore called out then-Waratahs forward Jacques Potgieter for a homophobic slur during a Super Rugby match in 2015.

The ripples of that moment are still being felt, with two of the game's biggest names taking a stand the likes of which Australian rugby had never seen.

Now Monash University researchers are teaming with club rugby players to train captains to stamp out homophobic language, adamant it "can be really powerful" if players set standards.

"They don't understand the language they're using is harming people like Dan, and lots of other gay or bisexual rugby players," Denison said.

"When we ask rugby players, we say 'have you heard homophobic language in the past two weeks?' Then we say 'have you heard people use words like fag or poof?' They're like 'I hear that all the time'.

"There's this disconnect between the language they're using and their attitude. They don't realise the impact."