Rugby World Cup star Jonathan Joseph proud of best mate Tyrone Mings after England debut and standing up racism

TYRONE MINGS’ best mate Jonathan Joseph is proud of the Three Lions star for standing up for what is right after the horrific racist abuse they suffered in Bulgaria.

England rugby centre Joseph went to school with Aston Villa ace Mings and the pair are still close pals.

Joseph is currently at the World Cup in Japan, preparing for the Red Rose’s quarter-final against Australia on Saturday, but has followed the disgusting news from the Euro 2020 qualifiers.

After seeing the abhorrent racism Mings & Co suffered in their 6-0 thrashing of Bulgaria, Joseph said: “I have seen bits of it, read up on it. It’s not great what happened out in Bulgaria.

“On a personal level I am delighted that he has got his first cap.

“It could have been in better circumstances, but I’m happy to see a mate do so well.

“From what I have heard they were very professional about it and at the same time trying to stand up for what is right as well.

“We are fortunate in the sport we are in to not see any of that stuff happen to us. You just hope things will get better for them.”

‘WE STUCK TOGETHER’

Mings, 26, was rightly “very proud” to make his Three Lions debut in Bulgaria but the match will be remembered for the way he and his team-mates stood together in the face of the sickening racist abuse.

Bulgaria’s captain Ivelin Popov pleaded with home fans to stop the attacks while manager Krasimir Balakov astonishingly claimed he didn’t hear any racism.

The former mortgage adviser played the full 90 minutes alongside Harry Maguire at the heart of England’s defence and put in a strong performance, insisting he was not personally hurt by the vile insults – which started during the warm-up.

He said: “I heard it before I even got to the other side of the pitch for the warm-up.

“We then spoke about it when we came in after the warm-up and, obviously, I don’t need to spell out what happened.

“I think everybody heard the chants but we stood together and made certain decisions.

“Just before half-time we were contemplating coming off because that was the next step after a stadium announcement.

“But there were a couple of minutes to go to half-time, so we thought we’d play on, go into half-time and talk about it.

“Everyone was happy to continue, to see if things improved in the second half and I think it was important we allowed the correct protocol to be followed.

“The team stuck together. We were here to play football, so we didn’t want to be having these conversations but it was important we made a collective decision.

“We represent a lot of people and have to not just make a stance for ourselves.

“It didn’t affect my feelings. I think I’m quite lucky in that way because I don’t feel like it is a personal assault.

“I feel sorry for people who have those views but I also have a duty to represent people that don’t have a voice, so it didn’t hurt or harm my feelings one bit.”