The man who suffered a hard-hitting tackle by a security guard when he streaked during Saturday night's All Blacks test match says he expected to get hit - but not from behind.
Adam Holtslag, 28, admitted he "probably started [drinking] a bit too early", but was egged on by his mates to run naked across the pitch at Dunedin's Forsyth Barr Stadium.
The incident has divided opinion over whether Holtslag deserved the tackle or security guard Brad Hemopo, himself a Canterbury rugby player, went too far.
But while Holtslag said he was left nursing sore ribs from "a bit of a cheap shot", he doesn't want to take the matter any further.
"It was a good hit, eh?" he said.
"It was definitely a bit over the top, but if you're going to streak, you have to expect that you're going to get hit. Not usually from behind, though."
The self-employed Christchurch builder recalls the incident clearly, but he "didn't see that coming at all".
"I wasn't going to resist or anything. As soon as they got me, I went along with it."
Holtslag had travelled to the game with five mates, and earlier in the day watched the Nude Blacks v England naked game.
He's now hoping his mates will cough up to pay his $500 fine imposed by the stadium.
Holtslag was also banned from there for two years. He will appear in the District Court tomorrow charged with offensive behaviour.
Holtslag said he was surprised by the attention the incident had gained around New Zealand and the world.
"The phone's been going mental - I've had to switch it off, basically. Thousands of Facebook messages."
Watch: Streaker tackle defended
Meanwhile, management at Forsyth Barr Stadium resolutely stood behind Mr Hemopo, 19, saying he was "absolutely, 100 per cent" in the right.
"We are going to come down hard on anyone who breaks rules at the venue," said Terry Davies, chief executive of Dunedin Venues Management.
"We have been speaking with the security guard, the security company, we looked at our pre-planning and pre-briefing, and it all fell into line and was consistent, and on that basis we will support him 100 per cent."
Mr Hemopo's mother, Sandy, also defended her son, saying he's "not a violent person" and was simply doing his job.
"He has been told to tackle if anybody goes on the field, so what do you do? That's why the security guards wear their rugby boots out there," she told Newstalk ZB.
She described it as "a bloody good tackle".