Fighting in sports can be very weird sometimes. We’ve seen hockey players ask someone to fight very politely and then wish them good luck, a brutal fight conclude with hugs and high-fives, and even one that involved no punches and ended a beer toast.
One recent bout of fisticuffs between two rugby players (seen in the GIF above) may also end with a beer, but at least it involved one very heavy-handed punch. That’s Northampton’s Salesi Ma’afu delivering a knockout haymaker to the face of England’s Tom Youngs in Leicester’s Premiership play-off semi-final.
It was a punch so vicious that even Youngs had to send Ma’afu a tweet showing respect and wishing him luck in the final. With clearly no bad blood between the two, Ma’afu responded by promising to buy Youngs a pint of beer.
I’m sure Youngs would probably rather just shell out a few bucks instead of taking that hammerfist to the face next time, but it’s definitely a cool display of sportsmanship by both parties.
