Tee please, Samoa's Sopoaga appeals for return of kicking aid

BORDEAUX, France : Lima Sopoaga has made an emotional appeal for the return of a kicking tee he has owned since he was 14, which went missing after Samoa's 43-10 victory over Chile on Saturday.

The 32-year-old former All Blacks flyhalf, who came on as a second-half replacement and converted Samoa's final try, said he had left the tee by the pitch with some eye drops.

"Could whoever took my goal kicking tee from the field please give it back to me," Sopoaga said in a post on X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter.

"I'll even pay you for it. I've had it since I was 14 years old."

World Rugby media chief Dominic Rumbles later joined the appeal, promising World Cup merchandise for the safe return of the plastic stand, which kickers use to prop the ball upright when they take kickoffs, penalties and conversions.