England confronted the All Blacks’ haka head on ahead of their stunning 19-7 Rugby World Cup semi-final win – now it looks set to hit them in the hip-pocket as a monetary fine looms.
The dramatic incident played out after a suggestion by England’s star playmaker Owen Farrell, who thought his side should face the Kiwis’ fearsome war dance in a V formation at Yokohama International Stadium.
“We wanted to not just stand there and let them come at us,” Farrell said after the match.
“We wanted to keep a respectful distance but we didn’t want to just stand in a flat line and let them come at us.”
Farrell and his teammates certainly weren’t taking a backward step as the New Zealanders laid down their challenge, and some even went too far with their confronting tactic, overstepping the mark as they advanced towards the haka on the edges of the V formation.
Joe Marler, Billy Vunipola, Mark Wilson, Elliot Daly, Luke Cowan‑Dickie and Ben Youngs all appeared to be standing over the halfway line during the haka – forcing the referees to get involved.
Most were also within 10 metres of the war dance as it was being performed, in contravention of World Rugby rules.
According to The Guardian, World Rugby will be considering punishing the side for breaching the “cultural ritual protocol”.
The likelihood of a fine looms large after France were slapped with a AU$4700 sanction for advancing on the haka in the 2011 World Cup final.
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