Some Kiwis (I blow my nose at you) think that the traditional (your father smelt of elderberries) pre-Bedisloe Cup match taunting (we've already got one) has maybe gone a bit far this year, as Channel 7's ad for the match against the Wallabies tomorrow shows the famous All-Blacks haka being performed by the team with digitally added handbags on their shoulders.
Why handbags? Well, a short while ago, in a bar a short skip across the ditch, Tana Umaga hit Hurricanes and All-Blacks teammate Chris Masoe with one (to break up a barfight with another man), and it's not the sort of image one forgets in a hurry.
The woman bystander whose bag was used later auctioned it off and received $NZ22,750 for the bag and her cellphone inside it which broke on Masoe's head, reducing him to tears.Despite some objections from the team's assistant manager about disrespect to Maori culture (which is going very strong, thankyou, because they're strong determined buggers who are not going to let it die), I imagine the All-Blacks themselves are pretty sanguine (building up to normal match-level sanguinary) about the sledging. They must have known that such a juicy incident was going to get used for the Bledisloe, where both countries always give it all they've got on and off the field.
The taunting always makes for a cracker of a match. Bring it on, big fellas.
Here's another NZ story on the promo, with a link to video of the ad.
5 comments:
Umaga's a canny bugger - after all you don't get to captain the All Blacks without knowing how to handle people. Can you imagine trying to carry on a fight after you've received a clip round the earhole from a handbag? (Note also that a commentator's term for on-field argy-bargy with more smoke than fire in it is, and had been for some time already, "handbags".)
The Wallabies must be nervous, rolling out the cheap shots so early...
ha ha - made you post!
I agree, by all accounts Umaga handled what could have escalated into a very nasty assault by Masoe very well indeed.
The Wallabies are looking better than they have for a while, but your mob are still running well, so it should be a good match. Just tell your weather gods none of us want fog, eh?
About to kick-off. mr tog and the tigling are off watching the game live at the Darling Harbour IMAX (mr tog won tickets at work yesterday).
Go you good things!
Who won again?
I was in the Backbencher's back bar on Friday. The bar is decorated with caricatures of sporting figures (the politicians get the front bar) and naturally Tana's there.
yeah yeah
Would have been a lot closer without those 14 points in the 10 minutes that we were one man down, and the silly young juggins didn't talk back that time he was sin-binned. Rotten ref.
Still, a good win for youse.
I love the caricature. Looks like a fun bar.
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