All Blacks center Sonny Bill Williams gave his World Cup winner’s medal to a boy he said was tackled by a Twickenham security guard after Saturday’s final.
Williams said the boy, later identified as Charlie Lines, was “smoked” — thrown to the ground — by a security official after running onto the field following the All Blacks’ 34-17 triumph over Australia.
Williams said he felt sorry for the youngster.
“I was walking around doing a lap of honor with the boys and a young fella came running out and he got smoked by the security guard, like full-on tackled him. I felt sorry for the little fella,” Williams said. “He would have been eight or seven, I kind of felt sorry for him.”
“Hopefully [the medal] made it a night to remember for him,” the All Blacks center said. “It’s better that he has it rather than having it hang up at home.”
The official Rugby World Cup Twitter account showed a picture of Williams giving his medal to “a young fan.”
However, it did not say why.
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