TORONTO

It was more of a tackle than a tickle.

Budget Chief Frank Di Giorgio flatly denied Friday that he was in a tickle fight with Mayor Rob Ford on the council floor.

Photos of the two horsing around Thursday during council’s budget debate were quickly going viral a day later. Without any context, the photos kind of look like a smiling Di Giorgio was tickling a laughing Ford.

U.S. websites who have come to know Ford through his ongoing crack cocaine scandal were quick to pick-up the photos and splash them online.

“Oh my God! You’ve got to be kidding,” Di Giorgio told the Sun on Friday when he heard the news of his growing fame as the other guy in the photo with Ford.

Di Giorgio confirmed the moment had nothing to do with tickling and everything to do with football — both Ford and Di Giorgio are former high school football coaches.

“The mayor and I share a background in football. Anytime the mayor, let’s say gets angry with me, I say, ‘You know what, we’ve got to settle this on the football field,’” he said.

“I said to him, ‘Lets get down into a three-point stance and we’ll fire out at each other and we’ll see who wins on this thing.’ I kind of lunged towards to him and pushed him back.”

As Di Giorgio walked away, Ford jumped into a boxer’s stance, threw some punches at the air and put his fists up in front of his face.

“It was all in fun,” Di Giorgio said.

don.peat@sunmedia.ca

(REUTERS/Aaron Harris)