Richmond have belatedly taken a much stronger public stance after AFL star Dustin Martin allegedly threatened a woman in a drunken incident.

Tigers chief executive Brendon Gale said in a statement that the Saturday night incident was very serious and it demands a thorough investigation.

He said Richmond are incredibly disappointed in Martin, who has apologised to the woman.

Earlier on Tuesday, club legend Kevin Bartlett demanded that Richmond ban Martin for 12 months and he make a $50,000 donation to an appropriate charity.

On Monday, Tigers football manager Dan Richardson had called the incident a hiccup.

Richmond expect to make an announcement later this week on what action they will take against Martin.