Losing the NRL grand final may have been one of the lowest points of James Graham's career but the fearless Canterbury prop overcame his disappointment to provide an 11-year-old boy with a gift he'll treasure forever.
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Ali Jawad, his father Richard, uncle Malik and other family members stood behind a barrier of police to clap the beaten Bulldogs as they disembarked their team bus at midnight and, to their shock, Graham headed straight for the boy, pulled a towel from his bag and after handing it over, farewelled him with his trademark wink, before ruffling his hair and giving his famous thumbs up.
When Graham rejoined his teammates, Ali was stunned to discover the bounty that he'd received.
"I opened the towel and saw his jersey ... it had the date of the grand final printed on it ... and his socks and shorts were also wrapped up in it, too," said Ali, who plays halfback for St Johns Eagles. "It is something I'll keep forever."
That vow was tested minutes after he opened the towel with his uncle Malik "Mal" Saadi offering to buy the battle-worn strip off him for $3000.
"It's priceless," Ali said. "James Graham has always been my favourite player. He's tough and I really admire him. I'll never forget his big hit on Sam Burgess."
Ali's uncle Mal said Graham's gesture will long be remembered as an incredible act of warmth and friendship by him and his family who are all devout Bulldogs supporters.
"I have seen James Graham a few times because we go to the same dentist and he strikes me as a really good bloke," he said.
"We wanted people to know what he did, it was such a great thing for him to give a kid his grand final jersey. I just don't know if James knows what it meant."
Graham's playing gear isn't the only grand final memory he no longer has in his possession. The Englishman no longer has his runner-up medal.
When contacted by Fairfax Media and asked whether he had either given or thrown away the medal he was presented with after the loss to Souths, Graham replied: "I think the phrase chose not to keep it is a better way to put it."
With Michael Ennis linking up with Cronulla, Graham will come into strong contention to take over as Bulldogs captain. In Ennis' absence, he shared the captaincy duties in the grand final loss to South Sydney.
