A touching gesture by France football

True colours France's 1-0 loss to Nigeria last Wednesday was definitely noteworthy for what was worn by the home team.

The France kit will be auctioned for charity.

France's 1-0 loss to Nigeria last Wednesday in St Etienne would not normally be considered a vintage worthy of remembering past the final whistle for most followers of Les Bleus, who booed the team off. But the uninspiring friendly defeat was definitely noteworthy for what was worn by the home team. There was no psychadelic offering, a la the Stade Francais rugby union team, indeed the kit worn by the hosts was the usual design.

It was what was on the back of their shirts that made the night special. Each of the players' names were written in Braille (insert joke about the referee's ability to spot fouls here). The move was to mark the 200th anniversary of the birth of the Frenchman Louis Braille, who invented the system of raised dots which allows blind people to read. The gesture could not be done during competitive matches, which is why the French Football Federation waited until now to honour Braille, who was born in Jan 1809 and blinded by the age of three.

The shirts will be auctioned with the money going to the French Federation for the Blind. *Do you know who the players is in this picture? Visit http://bit.ly/pkoSH to find out if you are right. Send us 300 words on your favourite team or venue and you could see your words printed in these pages. [e-mail]