"It can potentially get nasty but I'm really hopeful it won't."

Gaff has publicly apologised to Andrew Brayshaw and Mark Brayshaw said he had also received an apology from Gaff's father.

"He and his wife were upset and embarrassed and apologetic -and it's just a horrible thing to be in," Mark Brayshaw said.

Brayshaw senior said he told Gaff's father: "We accept your apology, please don't, in amongst all your considerations, don't worry about us".

Mark Brayshaw, who maintains the AFL should examine introducing a send-off system, said he saw the incident in Sunday's derby between the Perth clubs.

"I just thought 'oh, he'll be right and get up'," he said of his son.

"I started to watch young Andrew Gaff and he looked horrible out there and I thought 'oh God ... I knew that the narrative would change'.

"It was just nasty and horrible and and I found myself thinking 'here's a young bloke who has made a blue'."

Mark Brayshaw said he was driven home from the game by his son Hamish and they analysed footage of the incident.

"You can actually see my Andrew spread his legs a little bit and lower his centre of gravity," he said.

"And Hamish said to me, it's Andrew Gaff, it's one of his best mates and the most delightful bloke you have ever met.

"And thought to myself, my Andrew has inadvertently lowered his centre of gravity here and a chest punch has become a face punch.

"So when I spoke to his dad I said 'look mate, these things happen'."

AAP