Let The Men Be Afraid.....

on Wednesday, August 01, 2007

Yes, let the men be afraid, ...very afraid. And let the women ....drool. After reading squirrel and medstudentwife's comments, I decided that I would be a poor host if you had to scour elsewhere for video of sweaty hunks performing the haka. So here it is.

This first one is the traditional haka or "Ka Mate".




This second one is the new haka introduced in 2006 and is one that was specifically written for the All Blacks team. It is called "Kapa O Pango". This video is the recording of first time that this new haka is performed which was in a match with South Africa. It is also the first time that the haka is led by a non-Maori. The leader is the talented team captain Tana Umanga who is Samoan. Watch for the close up of the eye rolling and throat slitting at the end of the video. Extra marks if you understand the Japanese commentary.

28 comments:

molly said...

If the object is to intimidate --- they are wildly successful---shaking in my shoes here! Rugby is very popular in Ireland too---a most uncivilised sport, up there with boxing and wrestling! Never could understand the scrum....hope the team you're rootin' for wins though.

StayAtHomeKat said...

fascinating!

we should have that here for football!

StayAtHomeKat said...

I had to look up Molly's reference to "scrum" though......

a Rugby play in which, typically, three members of each team line up opposite one another with a group of two and a group of three players behind them, making an eight-person, three-two-three formation on each side; the ball is then rolled between the opposing front lines, the players of which stand with arms around a teammate's waist, meeting the opponent shoulder to shoulder, and attempt to kick the ball backward to a teammate.

and

British. a place or situation of confusion and racket; hubbub.

Anonymous said...

I love it!! I had seen some film of tribal posturing, (I believe it was Maori) and the exaggerated facial expressions, and the slapping, and wide stance stomping...truly terrifying. I wish we would substitute wars with this, one-up-man-ship display.
Beautiful, and truly awe inspiring.

Open Grove Claudia said...

Do they test for steroids in rugby??? 'Cuz those guys look a little roid enhanced. Very scary too!

Janice Thomson said...

Well that is quite the dance lol. We had a group of Maori dancers come to the interior when I lived there. It was the best show I have ever ever seen. We actually went twice we were so impressed. What made the show extra good was the humorous English translator describing the various moves of the dancers. 'Hot Lava' was their name if I remember correctly. They tour world wide. Great post Lgs.

Anonymous said...

big grin and drool !!!

We could use them here in Paradise to do some street patrolling - asy you kno wthe issues here. I think theyd scare a few out of town

Thanks LGS :) !!!

Anonymous said...

*lol* - did I just type that last comment ? Who's fingers did I use ? Guess I was in a Haka induced trance :0

the walking man said...

OH HELL YEAH! That was fantastic! Too be honest with you if I can write the right verse; I am going to perfect similar moves and use it in a slam competition or teach it to a younger protege that can move better, but oh hell yes that was great!


TWM

Ruth W. said...

good post..great culture to study up on...and so I will.

CS said...

Whoa.

Lone Grey Squirrel said...

molly,
I think boxing is quite barbaric and most wrestling is fake but rugby? It is rough but there is usually a lot of discipline in the teams (usually but not always!) so normally it stays clean.

kat,
yes....that's an awfully unhelpful discription of a scrum. A scrum is a contest for the ball with 8 men on either side binding together to push against the other team's eight men. At the point of contact between the two sides there are three men and the one in the middle is called the hooker. The ball is then thrown into the middle. The task of the eight men in the scrum is to push their opponents and gain control of the ball. The hooker, once in good position must use his legs to scoop the ball backwards to his side of the scrum. If he succeeds, they win possession of the ball. It is a contest of strength but also strategy and timing.

leslie,
Actually during the fading days of the British Empire, the reputation of some of these tribal groups like the Gurkhas was so strong that they often won battles just by showing up. Their opponents would be so demoralised that they surrendered or fled the field. So these intimidation tactics can save lives.

Lone Grey Squirrel said...

Claudia,
i think they do test for steroids. Personally, I think they look like that cause it is rumored they are fed raw meat! LoL.

janice,
Hot Lava? Sounds almost like a Las Vegas act ! LoL.
Glad you had a good time.

msw,
Enjoy!

Lone Grey Squirrel said...

TWM,
Look forward to hearing more when you have perfected your verse and moves! LoL.

ruth,
Taking the cerebral approach I see. No seriously, it is an interesting culture to learn about as it was very complex and well developed. It's okay to drool at the hunky male specimens too though!

cs,
Whoa? Sounds like part of the Haka chant. :)

Claire said...

Those Samoans are big guys!

Evalinn said...

I can´t see it...will be back coz u made me curious!

Anonymous said...

GO TEAM!!

Jo said...

LGS, I could watch that for hours. I don't know why, but that fascinates me. We had an exhibition here recently of New Zealand Maoris performing the haka, and it had a huge turnout. People loved it. I love the chanting as much as the posturing. It's fabulous...!

geewits said...

Drool? I found that icky and disturbing.

Lone Grey Squirrel said...

Claire,
They are big. And they are fast and they are agile. I know your son plays American Football. He could probably crush me like a tin can! But please note that these guys play a bruising, crushing game for 80 minutes without any protective padding and there are no specialist teams. Everyone plays all the time except for some substitutions. Even if you are bleeding, yuo are allowed just a few minutes to stop the bleeding and rejoin the game.

evalinn,
haha. Come back soon.

leslie,
Join me at the cheering section when the Rugby World Cup starts in September.

Lone Grey Squirrel said...

josie,
you've done a lot and know a lot. Even the haka is old hat to you. I mention it only because you always put yourself down about not being knowledgeable. It isn't true. If only I could posture, chant and spit like that, maybe the women will no longer think that lgs is "harmless". Yeah! *squirrel drifts off ....lost in day dream*

geewits,
not your cup of tea? Disturbing because? I'm guessing you don't like testosterone driven male strutting or is it the implied violence? I love watching the haka from the sidelines. If I were an opposing player, I'd definately find it disturbing.

Jocelyn said...

The whole thing makes me want to go rent WHALE RIDER again.

On the other hand, I'm always a bit put off by showy displays of testosterone. I distracted myself by admiring their uniforms.

Lone Grey Squirrel said...

157jocelyn,
you seem a little torn between sense and sensuality! :)
Yes, they do have great uniforms!

Drizel said...

wwhoohoo...South Africa...who won...did the haka scare the Sa team...hihihi...

Each school in New zeeland also have their own haka....its very kewl:)
Thanks for the clips:)

Lone Grey Squirrel said...

etain,
I think NZ won this time but one always remembers SA's great Rugby World Cup victory over NZ in the finals.

Anonymous said...

Wow that gave me the chills! I want to see that live!!

Lone Grey Squirrel said...

Squirrel,
Hehehehe! Look out for coverage on the Rugby World Cup in September.

CS said...

I mean, whoa, impressive and I imagine that would be very intimidating.

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