PHILIP FONG / AFP
New Zealand players performing the haka before the rugby match between Japan and New Zealand in Yokohama on October 26, 2024.
RUGBY – Gala rugby meeting this Saturday, November 2 at Twickenham. England host New Zealand as part of their autumn tour of the Northern Hemisphere. The match, however, started early with a heated controversy from across the Channel, after a message published on X by a player from the XV de la Rose. “The haka must be removed, it’s ridiculous”wrote English prop Joe Marler this week.
Before each international match, the All Blacks begin this traditional Maori warrior dance punctuated with big blows on the chest or thighs against their opponents. The haka, which dates back to the first tour of the “Original” All Blacks in Europe in 1905, has been performed systematically since 1987 after the national anthems and just before the match kicks off.
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After his message, the 34-year-old player who plays for the British club Harlequins received a slew of hateful and insulting comments. To the point that he preferred to deactivate his X account for several hours.
“Who is this Joe Marler?” »
He ended up reappearing on the social network the next day by posting a new message, trying to play the appeasement card without necessarily convincing: “Context is everything. I'm just having fun trying to generate interest before a big rugby match. There are some crazy answers. Full of love. »
“I also needed to satisfy my narcissism”he added in a second message published just after.
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In New Zealand, there was no hurry to shoot down the English player, as was the case for the Minister of Sports. “Who is this Joe Marler?” I've never heard of him. In my journey, I have met a few stalwarts with high IQs, but very few. Maybe that’s it…”reacted David Seymour, as reported by RMC Sport this Thursday, October 31.
What is certain is that the All Blacks haka this Saturday in London should be a little more scrutinized than usual. A haka which Joe Marler will not attend, since the player left the English gathering to “personal reasons” at the start of the week, before his controversial tweet.
Recently, New Zealand's haka was disrupted before a match in South Africa, after fireworks and music disrupted the end of the Maori dance. The South African Rugby Federation then wrote to its New Zealand counterpart to apologize. They had been accepted.
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