Heartwarming story behind viral Tom Lynch moment revealed

Richmond star Tom Lynch’s act of pure class won everyone in footy over on the weekend, but the young boy involved emerged as the real hero.

Richmond’s Tom Lynch became a fan favourite with his act of pure class following his team’s preliminary final win over Port Adelaide.

The Tigers got the better of the Power by six points in an enthralling encounter at Adelaide Oval on Friday night to book their spot in the Grand Final.

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But ugly scenes unfolded after the game. As Lynch stood on the boundary line conducting an interview with Channel 7, a fan threw a “bundy and coke” at him.

“Sorry, I’m copping it here a little bit. Can you please repeat that,” he said in the middle of his interview. “I just had a Bundy and Coke thrown on me.”

Channel 7’s Tom Browne reported a fan accused of throwing the drink at Lynch was ejected from the ground.

But moments after the interview came to an end, Lynch showed his class when he spoke to a young Port Adelaide fan who was in tears.

The child eventually returned to his dad’s side after the conversation with Lynch, in a moment that could turn the footy public’s view of him around.

Tom Lynch reacted after having a 'bundy and coke' thrown at him.

The heartwarming moment was made even better when the youngster and his father were interviewed on the weekend.

Archer Merritt couldn’t believe the way fellow fans were acting in the aftermath of the gruelling contest and sought out the star Tiger.

“The Port Adelaide supporters were bullying him and making fun of him because he kicked a goal. We felt bad for him and we wanted to congratulate him,” Archer Merritt told Channel 7.

Archer’s father Jason drew praise from footy fans after explaining to his son the actions from angry fans weren’t the way to go about handling a loss.

“One of the Port supporters had thrown his drink all over Lynch,” Jason said.

“Archer was getting a bit worried because things were getting a bit violent and escalated. I took him up the back (of the stands) away from it and said to him, ‘That’s not how you lose. That’s poor sportsmanship to carry on like that when your team’s lost’.

“Archie felt bad for that and understood that’s not how you lose a game of football, and that’s not how you treat footballers.

“So he asked if he could get down there and congratulate Tom Lynch on making the Grand Final.”

Lynch was all class in chatting to the youngster, but Archer was even more of a good sport for seeking him out in the first place.

"One of the Port supporters had thrown his drink all over Lynch. Archer was getting a bit worried. I took him up the back and said to him, 'That's not how you lose.'"

All class 🙏 pic.twitter.com/riWVUzNDIL

— 7AFL (@7AFL) October 17, 2020

CATS STAR BREAKS DOWN AFTER WIN

Geelong booked their spot in the AFL Grand Final after taking down Brisbane on Saturday night in front of a raucous Gabba crowd.

The emotion of advancing into a showdown against Richmond next Saturday night became too much after the final siren for Cats star Cam Guthrie.

Guthrie has enjoyed a stellar season which resulted in him earning a spot in the 2020 All Australian team and saw him finish ninth in the Brownlow Medal after polling 14 votes.

But as the Cats soaked in their dominant 11.16 (82) to 6.6 (42) victory, the waterworks flowed for Guthrie.

“It all just kind of hit me. It felt like nine years of hard work and I finally get the opportunity to do what I’ve wanted to do,” Guthrie said on ABC Grandstand.

“A few of the boys were a bit emotional. There has been a fair bit of adversity. It hit me all at once.”

This is how much it means. #GeelongStrong pic.twitter.com/4vZWiVOuAs

— Geelong Cats (@GeelongCats) October 17, 2020

Guthrie and the Cats will head into battle once again at the Gabba on Saturday night when the Grand Final gets underway at 7:30pm (AEDT).

They’ll square off against reigning premiers Richmond, who have become the most dominant team in the AFL and will be playing in their third Grand Final in four seasons.

Geelong superstar Gary Ablett is set to take the field for the final time, with teammate Harry Taylor also expected to hang up the boots after the game.

Cats skipper Joel Selwood will lead the club into the highly-anticipated contest for the 200th time as the team’s leader.