THE AFL players’ union will reportedly support the AFL's push for a tightened code of conduct.

AFLPA chief executive Brendon Gale told the Sunday Age the union was supportive of the move but hoped the recent trend of leadership groups disciplining their own teammates would be allowed to continue.

Late last month, the AFL wrote to all clubs and the players' association seeking their input for a new code that will add detail to the rules governing "conduct unbecoming".

"Rule 1.1.6 is conduct unbecoming but nobody really knows what it means, so what they are doing is spelling out the circumstances in which they will invoke that rule. I actually think that is a good idea," Gale said.

In recent years leadership groups at clubs have disciplined their teammates, most notably last year when Geelong's leadership group suspended forward Steven Johnson for six weeks at the beginning of the season after a summer of troubles.

Johnson returned to be a key player in Geelong's premiership victory, taking out the Norm Smith Medal for best afield in the Toyota AFL Grand Final.

"This has been on the table for a couple of years and there have been various drafts back and forth but it is just a matter of determining the circumstances when a club will act as opposed to when a club will act," Gale said.

"I guess there has been an effective trend, a trend towards player leadership groups to determine their own values, to determine what they think is important misconduct or misbehaving, and that should be preserved as well."

The issue of player misbehaviour hit the headlines again last week, when Collingwood was forced to walk away from its $500,000 a year Transport Accident Commission sponsorship after rookie player Sharrod Wellingham was charged with drink-driving last weekend.

In the memo sent to clubs last year, AFL chief executive Andrew Demetriou wrote that all people involved in the AFL would be held to higher standards of behaviour.

"The AFL competition has faced some significant challenges in recent times when dealing with the off-field behaviour of some of its personnel.

"When they make a mistake, we will continue to educate, counsel and rehabilitate but ultimately, it is up to each individual to take responsibility for their actions and accept the consequences when they make the wrong choices."

Clubs and the players' association have until February 20 to respond to the paper.

The AFL also wants to set up an advisory panel to help the league and clubs with sanctioning and penalties under the code.

It will also upgrade its investigation process by creating a professional standards and security unit.

The unit will investigate on-field incidents referred by the match review panel, as well as off-field incidents and will liaise with police.