AFL BOSS Gillon McLachlan is adamant 'political correctness' will not dictate what spectators can say during games.

A Richmond cheer squad member was banned for three games, by the Tigers' cheer squad rather than the AFL, for a comment made to an umpire. 

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McLachlan was speaking in China on Saturday while at the Shanghai Cup, a tournament featuring players from across Asia, with people from Singapore, Japan, Indonesia, Thailand, Vietnam and the Philippines taking part, along with the Chinese.

"Everyone needs to be able to come to the football and feel it's an inclusive environment, but the concept of 'PCness' and everything else is rubbish," McLachlan said. 

"People make complaints is generally referred to the club and it's dealt with, and that's what's happened here. 

"As I understand it, it was dealt with by the cheer squad itself and there's things like that happening all of the time every week."

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McLachlan was enthusiastic about Sunday afternoon's clash between St Kilda and Port Adelaide clash, taking place at Adelaide Arena at Jiangwan Stadium, although he spoke before news broke of the spate of illnesses running through the Saints camp.

Ben Paton and Nick Hind have made a last-minute flight to China after Jack Billings, Shane Savage and Daniel McKenzie fell ill and missed Saturday's training session. 

"The ground looks amazing. It's sold out. The weather looks OK, so it'll be a good day tomorrow and hopefully be a great game," McLachlan said.

Whether a mid-season trade period comes in next year is up in the air. 

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"I don't know about that. People have different views. We'll have a look at this, talk to the team and there'll be a recommendation. List flexibility gives people the opportunity to improve, make decisions and to get better faster," McLachlan said.

The CEO put his recruiting hat on while at the Shanghai Cup and spotted two who caught his eye. 

"I don’t know how old he is but there’s a guy from the Shanghai Tigers who is a serious player and apparently played for North Adelaide, and there was a centre half-forward from the Philippines who looked pretty good too," McLachlan said.