Former Wales international and British & Irish Lion Gareth Thomas has come out in praise of the All Blacks this evening.
Less than a week after Thomas was the victim of a heinous, homophobic attack in his home city of Cardiff, New Zealand's players have pledged to join Wales and France in wearing rainbow laces on their boots for this weekend's clash with Italy.
Taking to Twitter in an effort to convey his gratitude, Thomas stated; "I will I could put into words what this means."
I wish I could put in words what this means.🌈🌈 https://t.co/1z7yTwVelt
— Gareth Thomas (@gareththomas14) November 23, 2018
Thomas had previously revealed a sincere thanks to both the Welsh and French rugby unions in similarly deciding to show a sign of respect to his plight, and the plight of the LGBT community as a whole.
Ireland have already decided against wearing the rainbow laces ahead of this weekend's clash with the United States in Dublin.
A spokesperson from the IRFU stated; "As it would be impossible to assist with all requests, we decline the wearing of any emblem, armband, or shoelace (etc) for any one cause, as to do so would be unfair to the many worthy causes that approach us with similar requests.
"Unfortunately, there remains a number of societal issues that are yet to be eradicated, and we receive similar requests from organisations, across a range of issues, each year."
