It’s a great song and dance

THE Chronicle sport team this week gives its views on the haka and it’s place on the world’s rugby fields.

The England team watches as New Zealand performs the haka before the start of their Rugby World Cup semi-final at International Yokohama Stadium. (AP Photo/Aaron Favila)

JASON GIBBS: I watched France demolish Fiji 61-18 at the 2003 Rugby World Cup. Both teams chanced their hand and played beautiful free-flowing rugby.

The game was fantastic but it is the Fijian haka that I will never forget. You could’ve heard a pin drop at Suncorp when the Fijian team lined-up and then suddenly it was like a storm broke out of the ground - it was electrifying and I’m glad I was there close to action.

The haka is culture, history and passion - World Rugby needs it and the fans deserve it.

I do, however, think England has been treated unfairly - they certainly don’t deserve a fine.

At its core the haka is a challenge and I believe England (and other teams facing the haka) should be able to respond to it - provided they are not deliberately disrespectful or overtly confrontational. If they choose to go with a “Flying V” like the Poms, turn their backs like the 1996 Wallabies or form a huddle so be it.

Rugby needs more passion so I say “have it”.

GLEN McCULLOUGH: The haka is theatre and needs to be treated as such. It’s good for the game. I remember finding it really intimidating when I first watched it from my lounge chair all those years ago, as I’m sure did many players.

That was the whole idea of the Maori ceremonial dance or challenge reflecting New Zealand culture.

But it has since become more. It’s now also highly anticipated entertainment and like all entertainment it continues to evolve.

The team and player response to the haka is also entertainment and as long as it doesn’t become disrespectful it only adds to he pre-match hype.

Poor Willie Mason got himself in strife when he became one of the first players I know of who took it on himself to react on field to the provocation of the haka. Mason gave the Kiwi dancers his own spray which of course offended many people. Come to think of it, Willie couldn’t take a trick anywhere when it came to critics.

But he was only responding to the Kiwi challenge which he was entitled to do and his stand set the scene for more people and teams to follow that lead and add to the famous pre-game ritual with their own haka reactions.

SEAN TEUMA: As long as there’s no blatant disrespect, I don’t have a problem with it.

The haka is intimidating by nature, and as Dan Coles said, it’s a challenge. I think it’s great that England stood up to the challenge, issuing one of their own.

Judging by the semi-final between the two, it only seemed to fire England up more, who played with plenty of passion and intensity, while the All Blacks were uncharacteristically lethargic. Personally I think it’s great when teams walk forward whenever New Zealand or any other Pacific Islands nation performs their haka, and there is a bit of intensity in the middle.

Are people going to honestly say they don’t love when two gun teams get up in each other’s faces?

I love it. It just builds anticipation for that first-up or point of contact. It leaves you wanting big clashes and teams to just go 100 miles an hour at each other.

Coles said it best when he said that New Zealand thought it was awesome. It was something different, and if teams follow England’s lead and do it in the future, it might just awaken a whole new beast in NZ rugby.