M?ori All Blacks

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The M?ori All Blacks, previously called the New Zealand M?ori, is a rugby union team from New Zealand. A representative team of the New Zealand Rugby Union, a prerequisite for playing in this team is that the player has M?ori whakapapa (genealogy). In the past this rule was not strictly applied; non-M?ori players who looked M?ori were often selected in the team. These included a few Island players and a couple of African descent. Today all players have their ancestry verified before selection in the team.

The team's first match was in 1888 against Hawke's Bay, and their first international match in 1888 against Ireland in Dublin. This was followed by a tour of Europe in 1888 and 1889 where the team suffered their first Test defeat--to Wales in Swansea.

The team's early uniforms consisted of a black jersey with a silver fern and white knickerbockers. New Zealand M?ori perform a haka--a M?ori challenge or posture dance--before each match. The haka was later adopted by the New Zealand national team, the All Blacks, as were their black shirts. In 2001, the M?ori first performed the "Timatanga" haka, which describes the evolution of life and the creation of New Zealand from the four winds.

The M?ori All Blacks competed in the Churchill Cup, which they won in 2004 and 2006, and in the Pacific Nations Cup, which they won in 2008. In November 2012, the team played three matches in England, against Canada at Oxford University RFC, the Leicester Tigers and an RFU Championship XV consisting of English-qualified players from the second tier RFU Championship.

Since being given official status in 1910, the New Zealand Maori have selected some of rugby union's great players, including fullback George Nepia who played 46 games for New Zealand from 1924-30, halfback Sid Going who played 86 matches for his country and former New Zealand captain Tane Norton, who represented New Zealand in 61 games, including 27 tests, and later became president of the New Zealand Rugby Union.

Video M?ori All Blacks

History

The 1888-1889 New Zealand Native football team organised by Joseph Warbrick was the first overseas team to tour the Home Nations, where the team became the first New Zealand side to perform a haka, and also the first to wear an all black uniform. It was however a wholly private endeavour.

The first New Zealand M?ori team given official status was selected in 1910. That year the team toured New Zealand and Australia, playing a range of combined New Zealand provinces and Australian state teams. An American Universities squad was touring Australia at the same time and two fixtures were against the New Zealand M?oris. Both were played at Sydney and were won by the New Zealanders 14-11 and 21-3 respectively. In their 19 total matches played they won 12, drew 3 and lost 4 games.

The New Zealand M?oris had not played a match outside of New Zealand or Australia until 1926, when they undertook a European tour of France, England and Wales. They also played two games in New Zealand before they left, two more in Australia on the way, and also stopped in Sri Lanka for one game before travelling to France to start the European fixtures. On the return to New Zealand they stopped in Victoria, Australia for a final game in which they won 41-3. In all there were 40 games played. The New Zealand M?oris won 30 of those, drew 2 and lost 8.

The team was renamed the Maori All Blacks in 2012, having been previously called the New Zealand Maori and New Zealand Maoris.

The team is a selection of the best of New Zealand's M?ori rugby players and boasts a proud history of defeating national sides. At matches in New Zealand in 2010 to mark one hundred years of M?ori All Blacks rugby, the team defeated Ireland and England, having beaten the British and Irish Lions in 2005. Many members have gone on to play for the All Blacks.

Maps M?ori All Blacks

M?ori All Blacks and apartheid

New Zealand has a long history of sporting contact with South Africa, especially through rugby union. Until the 1970s this resulted in discrimination against M?ori players, since the apartheid political system in South Africa for most of the twentieth century did not allow people of different races to play sport together, and therefore South African officials requested that M?ori players not be included in sides which toured their country. Despite some of New Zealand's best players being M?ori, this was agreed to, and M?ori were excluded from tours of South Africa, including the M?ori All Blacks.

Nonetheless in the early period, South Africa did play the M?ori All Blacks. In April 2010 it was revealed by Muru Walters that in 1956 Ernest Corbett, Minister of M?ori Affairs, had told the team to deliberately lose to the Springboks "for the future of rugby". The M?ori team lost 37-0. This was followed by Walters calling for the New Zealand government to apologise for the way it treated M?ori rugby players.

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Professional era

The professional era in M?ori rugby union began in 1994, marked the team lost only four of its 26 games played between 1994 and 2004, including beating England, Argentina, Scotland and Fiji. The M?ori continued their winning form in 2004 beating the England Saxons in extra time in the final of the Churchill Cup in Canada.

One of their two annual tournaments is a competition involving the Pacific top national teams, the Pacific Nations Cup. From 2008 they replaced the Junior All Blacks, where they were undefeated champions, narrowly beating Australia A in the final game of the tournament. The Churchill Cup was another, winning in 2004 after they returned to the competition in 2006, defeating Ireland A and the USA in pool play in Santa Clara, California and Scotland A in the final in Edmonton, Alberta.

In 2005 the M?ori beat the British and Irish Lions for the first time in an official match. Their preparations for this match forced them to withdraw from the 2005 Churchill Cup. In August 2012, NZRU announced the M?ori All Blacks would play three matches in the United Kingdom, including an international fixture against Canada. Jamie Joseph was coach with assistance from Daryl Gibson.

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Haka

One of the New Zealand Natives' legacies was the haka, a traditional M?ori posture dance with vigorous movements and stamping of the feet, to the accompaniment of rhythmically shouted words; this was first performed during a match on 3 October 1888 against Surrey in England, United Kingdom. The haka was later adopted by the New Zealand national team, the All Blacks.

In 2001, the M?ori first performed the "Timatanga" haka, which describes the evolution of life and the creation of New Zealand from the four winds. This was written especially for the New Zealand Maori team by team kaum?tua (elder) Whetu Tipiwai. It tells the Maori story of the creation from the void, the nothingness, the darkness to what we have today. It also tells of a gathering of young warriors, young chiefs, young rugby players who are making a statement and setting aims, objectives and strategies to achieve matauranga (knowledge), whanaunatanga (unity) and taumatatanga (excellence).

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Matches against international sides

New Zealand M?ori matches against international sides, including the New Zealand Natives 1888 and 1889 tour. These results are only against full international sides, including the British and Irish Lions. Not against second national teams.

Overall

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Squad for 2017 November tour

New Zealand M?ori 25-man squad for their November tour matches against the Canadian National Team and the French Barbarians. Two additions players are yet to be added.

All squad members play rugby in New Zealand.

• Head Coach - Clayton McMillan

Note: Bold denotes players that have represented the M?ori All Blacks in previous tours.

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Notable players

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See also

• New Zealand M?ori rugby league team
• New Zealand M?ori cricket team

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References

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External links

• Uncovering the Maori mystery BBC Sport, 5 June 2003
• Rugby Union Football - History An Encyclopaedia of New Zealand 1966
• Against the Odds - Matt Te Pou and Maori Rugby (book) Huia Publishers

Source of article : Wikipedia