Twickenham pride flag hailed amid Folau call-up
World XV coach Steve Hansen has welcomed a decision to raise the rainbow flag above Twickenham for their game against the Barbarians on Sunday after he named Israel Folau in his squad.
Folau, an evangelical Christian, had his Wallabies contract terminated in 2019 after he posted a meme on social media that said “hell” awaits homosexual people and other groups. He then returned to international rugby last year with Tonga.
British media reported that England’s Rugby Football Union would respond to the selection of Folau with a show of support for the LGBTQ community by flying the rainbow flag.
“It’s a consequence of Folau’s selection and I think it’s a good thing. It’s an opportunity to show support to that flag. I don’t have a problem with it,” Hansen said.
“There wouldn’t be one there if Israel wasn’t playing, so whenever we can bring attention to people who are suffering in a positive way, that’s good.
“They deserve to be loved and cared for as much as anybody else. If we all did that, it’d be a happy place, wouldn’t it?”
Hansen, who led the All Blacks to World Cup glory in 2015, said some people might be hurt by his decision to pick Folau but added he did not agree with the player’s views. “He’s a rugby player first and foremost and he’s been sanctioned,” he said. “Those sanctions have finished, he’s playing rugby, he’s probably going to go to the World Cup, so my job is to pick the best team and that’s what I’ve done.”
After switching allegiance to Tonga, Folau, 34, is set to play at the World Cup in France later this year.
Hansen will go head-to-head with Eddie Jones, who is the Barbarians boss this weekend.
Jones, in charge of Australia for a second stint, is making his first return to Twickenham since being sacked by England in December.
On whether the sacking was the right thing to do, Hansen hailed Jones as a “great rugby man” with “a good record at World Cups”.