The first thing New Zealand will do as they seek to win the World Cup on their home turf is the Haka — the synchronised Maori dance which, with its chanting, chest-beating and eye-rolling, gets the All Blacks into a competitive mood before each match. The big question for any opposing team is: what does one do in reply?
New Zealand have been posing this problem for the opposition since 1894. Mostly they have performed the version of the Haka known as the Ka Mate, but in 2005, before beating South Africa, they unveiled a controversial new model, the Kapa O Pango, which included what looked like a throat-slitting action.
Although that gesture apparently referred to the drawing in of the breath of life, the new dance was widely seen as provocative, with one respected observer insisting that the rugby field is 'not a back-street alley'. The All Blacks reverted to the traditional Ka Mate version, but the controversial move has since reappeared.
The Haka, whichever version it may be, leaves the opposing team standing the regulation 15m away with a dilemma on their hands: to react, or remain unmoved? In 1905, on the All Blacks' first tour of the UK, the Welsh crowd — led by its team — responded by singing their national anthem. Since then the Australian crowd have belted out Waltzing Matilda.
Other responses have been to ignore it — the Australians famously performed their warm-up drill during the Haka in 1996 in Wellington. But this ploy backfired for the Italians in a 2007 World Cup pool match — it spurred the New Zealand team to a 76-14 win.
Irish captain Willie Anderson and his team chose to edge towards the Haka in 1989, with Anderson ending up inches from the face of his New Zealand counterpart Buck Shelford. Englishman Richard Cockerill performed a similar stunt in 1997, as did the French team in the 2007 quarterfinals.
In the 2008 Rugby Autumn Tests, Wales refused to move until the All Blacks did. This resulted in the referee berating both teams for a full two minutes after the Haka had ended.
Tonga will be the first team requiring an answer as they face the hosts in the Auckland opener on 9 September. We shall see what they come up with...
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