As revelations about Collingwood players testing positive to illicit drugs in off-season hair testing marred the start of the 2016 season, the AFL supremo also denied the Collingwood results had been leaked.

"I've been drug tested," McLachlan said on 3AW.

"All our management team is subject to the same policy. What's good for the goose is good for the gander."

McLachlan insisted that there was no breach of confidentiality last week when it was reported that up to 11 Collingwood players had tested positive to illicit drugs in the off-season.

The revelation caused a huge stir in the footy world given that off-season illicit drug testing figures are not meant to be publicised.

Magpies coach Nathan Buckley felt as though his players were betrayed while president Eddie McGuire believed the report was an attempt to "destroy" his club.

However, it has since been revealed that the number of Collingwood players who did test positive was less than 11.

McLachlan blamed the rush from sections of the media to run with the story first for the inaccurate reporting of the figures.

"There's been this discussion about of confidentiality in the process. I am not in denial about the numbers broadly that we do have players testing positive," McLachlan told Triple M on Friday morning.

"But what I can say is the confidentiality of this process has been preserved because none of the numbers out there broadly are exactly accurate, they're not right ...  it's not because there has been a breach of the confidentiality that people have the numbers.

"A lot of people are now saying that we can't preserve the confidentiality [but] the numbers we've seen out there are not correct."

The Collingwood story has led to suggestions that the players may walk away from the illicit drugs policy all together given they voluntarily take part in it.

But McLachlan defended the policy and said it was in place because the league wanted to be a leader in society on the issue.

"We take the advice of all of the experts in formulating the policy and we continue to iterate it and to try to improve it," he said.

"A year ago we started discussions because we thought players have rights and they also have responsibilities. At its core it is trying to educate, inform and assist players but on the flip side too it is also about actually then taking a stick if they don't modify their behaviour and on the second strike you get suspended.

"So we have changed the policy [to be] more aggressive but it is a policy that will continue to evolve ... it's been informed by all the best health professionals, by the police in consultation with the clubs, it is as strong an illicit policy that exists in world sport and for clarity it is distinct and separate from the WADA [World Anti-Doping Agency] code which means that if a player tests positive for any illicit drugs on match day he is suspended for four years."

McLachlan stressed that the use of recreational drugs was not rife within the AFL's playing ranks.

"The statistics say that drug use within our players in the off-season is well below the levels of society," he said.

Meanwhile, McLachlan revealed that former St Kilda captain and Collingwood premiership player Luke Ball would replace Wayne Campbell on an interim basis as the league's umpires boss.

Campbell vacated the position this week to join Greater Western Sydney as their new football manager.