Israel Folau only player not to take a knee before St Helens vs Catalans Dragons in Super League return

Israel Folau appeared to be the only player not to take a knee ahead of Catalans Dragons' Super League resumption game against St Helens.

Players from both teams were joined by the officials to kneel in solidarity of the Black Lives Matter movement seconds before Sunday's Headingley kick-off, a gesture seen across a multitude of sports in recent weeks.

The former Australia rugby union international remained stood while his team-mates and opponents knelt.

St Helens secured a 34-6 victory in the first Super League game since March, after which Catalans head coach Steve McNamara asserted the club is "completely against racism" but explained the players were given a "personal choice" whether to kneel or not.

"As a club we are completely against racism and all for equal opportunity," he said. "But there were some players and staff who made the decision not to take the knee, that was based on personal choice and we decided we would respect anyone's personal choice on the matter."

The 31-year-old - who was sacked by Rugby Australia for posting homophobic slurs on his social media accounts in 2019 - was handed a league contract by the Catalans in January.