Hawthorn president Jeff Kennett has lashed the AFL over the expansion of the women's league.
The Hawks have missed out on the six new teams that will join the AFLW over the next two years.
Speaking after the AFLW grand final, Kennett said there was a lack of clarity over when Hawthorn might join and called it discriminatory and inappropriate.
Kennett addressed his comments to AFL chairman Richard Goyder, who was in the audience at the pre-match dinner for Hawthorn's season opener against Collingwood on Saturday night at the MCG.
There was strong applause in the room as Kennett pitched his case.
He said the league should give "serious consideration" to any AFL club that wants a women's team to have that opportunity by 2020.
"At the moment we are being staged in and Hawthorn, and other teams, have no knowledge of when we might eventually play in the competition," Kennett said.
"That is, with due respect, discriminatory ... and inappropriate."
The AFL announced the expansion plans last September, with Geelong and North Melbourne to bring the AFLW to 10 teams next season.
Richmond, St Kilda, West Coast and Gold Coast will follow in 2020.
Essendon were also unhappy at missing out when the expansion plan was unveiled.
The six teams who will join the league already had provisional licences, but Hawthorn and Essendon did not.
Hawthorn and Essendon have teams in the local VFLW.
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