Captain called change to haka response

Lions captain Gareth Thomas said it was his decision to change his team's reaction to the All Blacks haka before the second test.

Lions coach Sir Clive Woodward had said during the week leading up to the match the tourists would adopt the same actions as they had before the first test loss in Christchurch.

There, captain Brian O'Driscoll faced the challenge and knelt, picking up an imaginary piece of grass. It had been suggested to the Lions in an email from a Maori as an appropriate response.

But O'Driscoll's tour-ending injury in the first minute led to speculation the All Blacks had thought the Lions' actions were disrespectful.

It fuelled a negative reaction and instead of repeating it on Saturday night, the Lions stood shoulder to shoulder in line facing the All Blacks.

"Last week we tried to do it with respect to the haka," Thomas said. "There was a lot of negativity about it. I decided we'll do it the way every other team does it.

"We showed them respect last time and we showed them respect this time."