Rugby the most macho of male sports was coming to terms with the news that Gareth Thomas announced himself as the only gay in the village - the only male rugby pro to do so.

In breaking one of the major taboos that surround sport, the former Wales and British Lions captain, is highly unlikely to have opened the floodgates for a rash of further 'coming outs' from the closet.

You see, male sport is one of few places where being gay is still considered 'not the done thing', and in sports like rugby or football, you struggle to name a single gay player.

Depending on who you believe around one in ten of us is supposed to be gay, so that would mean that the average rugby squad would have at least two homosexuals in their ranks. This thought would be enough to have a large proportion of the macho set insisting on private changing facilities just in case the gay player took a fancy to them. They should be so lucky. I mean, rugby players are an ugly lot anyway.  

There are few examples of sport playing gays who have made their sexuality public. The one that springs to mind was former footballer Justin Fashanu who came out 1990 but found it all too much and tragically ended his life eight years later.

But is it so hard for players to come out today? Does anyone really care? If David Beckham suddenly announced that he had being living a lie and was actually gay, yes, he'd get plenty of column inches and pages for a few days, but that wouldn't change what he'd achieved in his career. Maybe he realises his wife looks more like a boy than a woman these days anyway.

There might be some crude comments thrown in his direction from opposition supporters, but if the authorities were clamp down on it in the same way that they do racist comments, it wouldn't be tolerated and therefore wouldn't be a problem.

Thomas' problem was that he didn't come out sooner, and his wife is the one you have to feel for here. Maybe if hadn't made a big deal about it either, then nobody else would. It's not as if anyone would be brave enough to say anything to his face is it?

Female sports stars have been more willing to be open about it. I probably learned what the word lesbian was as a kid due to Martina Navratilova publicly announcing her sexuality in 1981, and surely the world hasn't stood still since?

Is it too much to expect that players won't event feel the need to come out and say what their sexual orientation is? I'm sure there are hundreds of pro rugby and football players up and down the country sweating as much as Thomas was, and needlessly fearing an 'outing' at the hands of the gutter press and gossip columnists. Thomas, you are not alone in your professional game and you know it - we all know it - and you know what, it really doesn't matter.