Some of the biggest names in the AFL stood in front of the game's new 'Yes' sign last month when chief executive Gillon McLachlan declared: "We are committed to equality and diversity".

They were the words that gave Hannah Mouncey - and any other transgender athletes - hope.

So you could forgive Canberra transgender player Mouncey for scratching her head when the AFL told her she didn't belong in the AFLW.

Somewhere behind the 'Yes' was a 'No' for transgender athletes. Inclusive? How is that being "committed to equality"?

Unfortunately it seems diversity was temporary and lasted about as long as the same-sex marriage 'Yes' sign at AFL House.

Yes, everyone knows same-sex marriage and transgender athletes are different things. But why does equality and diversity include one, but not the other?

Mouncey's AFLW draft hopes were shattered on Tuesday when she was told she didn't fit with the "maturity of the AFLW competition" or the "current player cohort".

All of a sudden Mouncey became the odd person out in a game that is built on different body types in different positions and players possessing unique physical attributes.

???The AFL says it based its decision on the Victorian Equal Opportunity Act, which states that athletes can be discriminated against based on their sex or gender "if strength, stamina or physique is relevant".

The sad part is Mouncey, 27, found out just 15 minutes before the rest of the world.

She has copped plenty of grief on social media, but has handled her situation with remarkable grace. Instead of having a crack at the AFL, she wished luck to those still eligible to be drafted.

"Good luck to all the girls who nominated for the AFLW draft tomorrow, especially my mates from Canberra," Mouncey said on Twitter.

"I can't wait to see you all at the highest level and to play with and against you back in Canberra next year!"

Deep down she knew being rejected by the AFL's was a possibility, but it was still a devastating blow.

There have been plenty of arguments from both sides as to why Mouncey should and shouldn't be playing in the AFLW.

The knockers say she's too big and too strong to play against women. Mouncey says yes she's big, but she's slow and that's why women in Canberra enjoyed playing against her.

Let's just pause for a second. The AFL says Mouncey is free to play against amateurs in Canberra, but not against the best women in Australia, who are presumably physically superior?

How is that equal? How is that inclusive? Wasn't the point of changing the AFL logo to 'Yes' to show to the world the game was moving forward?

???How can an organisation so intent on being inclusive be comfortable with the way it has handled Mouncey's situation?

Mouncey, a former Australian representative in the men's European handball team, had hoped to become the first elite transgender footballer in Australia.

She will continue playing in Canberra next year and hasn't ruled out entering the draft next year. But the timing of the AFL's decision left her no avenue for appeal this year.

Under International Olympic Committee rules, Mouncey is eligible to compete as a female after starting to take gender transition hormones in 2015.

???Mouncey is a 100 kilograms, 190 centimetres ruck who kicked 17 goals playing for Ainslie in the capital.

The IOC require athletes to be under the testosterone threshold of 10 nanomoles per litre. Mouncey's last reading was 0.5 nanomoles per litre.

The argument for rejecting Mouncey's AFLW bid is because of her strength, stamina or physique. Isn't the beauty of the AFL that athletes of all different shapes and sizes can play the game?

Instead, the AFL missed a chance to stand by its own equality pledge.

"We are committed to equality and diversity and we support the rights of all Australians to live, work and play free from discrimination," McLachlan said in a statement last month.

Here was an opportunity to prove it wants to be inclusive, rather than just delivering empty words.

Mouncey knows her story will attract attention, even if she doesn't want it. But the fact she has been left waiting for an answer is cruel.

When Mouncey revealed her story last year, she said: "Sport is an incredibly accepting thing, and the problem is sport, I don't think, is going to have the chance to prove that until people come out.

"People aren't necessarily going to feel comfortable coming out until they've shown that. It's really hard unless it's shown and [people say] 'here's a gay or a trans athlete, we're really supportive of them'."