Samoan player suspended for alleged tunnel attack on Wales' Tom Williams during Sevens World Cup

World Rugby has confirmed that a player from Samoa has been provisionally banned following an alleged assault on Wales' Tom Williams following the Challenge quarter-final game of the recently concluded Rugby World Cup Sevens in San Francisco.

Samoan Rugby Union has suspended Gordon Langkilde for the final and third day of the Championship after a police investigation was launched on the incident with Williams suffering injuries and was replaced by Will Talbot-Davie for Sunday's schedule.

According to reports it is understood that the clash had taken place in the tunnel of AT&T Park on Saturday which Wales went on to win 24-19 and Williams was seen bleeding.

Williams' Wales team-mate Luke Treharne said the incident left the team in shock especially considering there was no provocation whatsoever from the Welsh side.

“There was an incident. I am not sure how much I can say but a couple of our boys were pretty seriously injured at the end of it, and the police are involved,” he said.

“When everything comes out you will see all the details of it — it is pretty shocking stuff. The boys used it as a bit of motivation. We were all there so we all knew about it straight away. There was nothing at all, nothing really sparked it – it was unprovoked. It was nasty stuff to see.”

World Rugby also issued a statement on the incident and added that the matter is now handled by Californian authorities.

“We can confirm a Samoa player has been provisionally suspended following an initial investigation into an alleged incident in the tunnel area," read the statement.

"The alleged behaviour is not aligned with the sport’s values and the excellent spirit in which this competition has been played.”

Wales managed to finish 11th in the showpiece event following a 12-35 win over Canada in their final game.