Gareth Thomas: Nigel Owens is like a favourite teacher – you can disagree but still share a joke

Nigel Owens is like your favourite school teacher. Even though sometimes you may disagree, you appreciate he knows the rules better than you do and you respect him for that. You can also have an understanding of his human nature and can have fun with him.

In rugby that is great because the pressure is sometimes so great that if the man in the middle running the game is not willing to crack a joke or raise a smile when the situation is not that serious, then it will flow from the match and the attitude of the players.

Everyone has a teacher who they love and respect and for me that is how I remember him as a referee, even though I hated him sometimes because he told me to do some things on the field that I didn’t want to do. But I knew he was asking me to do it as it was one of the laws of the game.

Nigel’s character on the field epitomises who he is off the field - that is what is so great about him. He doesn’t become a different character on the pitch. He’s fun, he’s a comedian. He does stand-ups with after dinner speaking at all the rugby clubs and is really successful because he’s so funny. He’s not trying to be a character on the field, or to be anyone else. That’s why everyone loves him because when you speak to him after the game it’s the same person.

I remember he used to wind me up a bit because I am a Welsh speaker. At one time there were a lot of foreign imports in Welsh rugby and he would speak Welsh to the guys who could speak it and English to the other guys. It was his way of trying to stay true to the Welsh speakers and respect the English speakers at the same time. Sometimes I didn’t know if I was coming or going with him though as I didn’t know which language he would speak next!

He’s got a lot of tricks in his bag but knows when to use them. He knows when the time is right and doesn’t just use them for the sake of it. He uses them very cleverly and wisely and that is another great talent of his.

I know Nigel well. For me, even before the World Cup started, having been refereed by him I knew he was going to be the right man for the final. From day one he was always the favourite to do it and he has proved during the World Cup that he has the right credentials.

Simply as a referee, everyone holds him in such high esteem and they respect him. So in a game where it is all about pressure where decisions can make a difference between winning and losing, to have someone in the middle who everyone respects will make life a lot easier for everybody playing.

True to myself [the BBC documentary where he talked about the pressures of the modern game, his private struggles with his sexuality, and his family] shows the person behind the mask. For players like New Zealand captain Richie McCaw, it’s nice to know referees are human. The documentary showed me a side of him that I knew about, but not fully. He opened himself up. For people that are willing to do that to help others - what a great trait to have and what a great thing to have done in your life. He won’t be under any extra pressure because of it at the weekend. The players and the public will warm to him even more, there is nothing negative about it.

He won’t be worried about the homophobic chants that were aimed at him at Twickenham last year. Knowing Nigel, he’s a tough character and 99 per cent of people will always support him. In a pressure situation not everyone is going to love the decision you make and they will use certain things against you. He is a calm character. He is there to do a job on Saturday and I’m sure people will respect him for it.

It hurts when people call you names and they abuse you. With Nigel it’s about his ability not his sexuality. I say to people if I make a mistake then that doesn’t give you a right to call me homophobic names because I dropped a rugby ball. I faced it but came out of it stronger. Those people who abuse you come out weaker. You often find there will have been a complaint put in or something is done about it to make them realise what they said was wrong and what they did shouldn’t happen again.

It’s usually a process to go through but Nigel has faced it once at Twickenham and people will have an understanding that they don’t want to be the one pointed out in the crowd for being homophobic.

In fact, I think it’s good the game is at Twickenham. As with all diversity in sport, it is about progress and change. I think nothing will happen on Saturday which shows what Nigel says is true - that things have got better for everyone. It happened last time but won’t happen this time which shows we are moving on, it’s a good thing.