Pre-match stand-off in Melbourne wasn’t meant to happen

An epic pre-match moment in Melbourne caused a stir and the New Zealand captain has revealed just how it happened.

New Zealand captain James Fisher-Harris says the stirring pre-match confrontation with the Kangaroos at AAMI Park on Saturday night wasn’t planned but conceded coming nose-to-nose with their opponents looked “pretty cool”.

Australian captain James Tedesco said his player’s “weren’t sure” what was happening after the haka as the two teams stared at each other in silence for nearly a minute and his players were “paying their respects” to their opponents.

After the stare-down, the Kiwis marched towards their unmoved opponents, before coming nose-to-nose with each other.

But, feeling flat after losing a physical encounter 36-18, and wiping blood off his face, Fisher-Harris said he was waiting for the Kangaroos to move, so they could get to their side of the field and finish their warm-up before kick-off.

The Kiwi skipper said it just so happened that after the stare-down they started moving to their designated area, and had to go through the Australians to get there with the players all coming together,

“To be honest, we were just going to the half-way and they wanted to stare at us, so we went right up to them,” he said.

If that pre-match is anything to go by, this is going to be EPIC 🔥

📺 Watch #PacificChampionships on ch.502 or stream on Kayo: https://t.co/AHgW2ThX7w
✍️ BLOG https://t.co/d3CmJ5rZ2Zpic.twitter.com/aS3r7DSqAR

— Fox League (@FOXNRL) October 28, 2023

“We were actually supposed to be on the left side, so I was pretty much just trying to tell them to go to the other side. So it‘s a bit weird.

“But it is what it is. I don’t know what was going on really, but it all looked pretty cool.”

Tedesco said his men didn’t want to waver as their opponents approached, not knowing they were just trying to get to their starting positions.

“We weren’t sure, actually. You’ve for to respect the haka but then it finished and we just sort of staring at each other for a bit so we weren’t really sure what the process was,” he said.

“But we‘re just gonna pay our respects and you know, hold our boomerang strong, which is what we did.

“Most of the games that’s pretty much what happens, they get right in your face. And yeah, that‘s all part of the part of the process.”

The two teams will clash again in Hamilton in the final of the Pacific Championship and Fisher-Harris said he “can’t wait” for his team’s quick shot at redemption.

“I can‘t wait to be honest. A little bit disappointed after tonight,” he said.

“We can take a lot of confidence out of out of the game. But yeah, we just need to be better.”