Editorial: Do's and don'ts when facing the haka

The British and Irish Lions landed in Auckland yesterday for a rugby tour that is likely to end in disappointment.

Still, thoughts of impending failure were on the back-burner as they were greeted by the traditional powhiri and wero challenge.

Hopefully, they were also given a rundown on protocols around the haka which they will face from the All Blacks and others during their stay.

The haka - that holiest of holy rituals - has tripped up many an opposition team, including the unfortunate lads from Rangitikei College who last week may well have had a part in a bizarre piece of rugby history.

Facing the pre-match display from Stratford High, the Rangitikei boys linked arms and moved five metres towards their opponents.

All in the spirit of the iconic challenge, nothing nasty ... no harm done, you might think.

But, in a remarkable show of officialdom, the referee penalised them and, instead of the match starting with a kick-off, it started with a penalty kick for Stratford from the centre spot.

Has a game ever begun in such a fashion? It certainly had the rugby nerds scratching their heads.

To concede a penalty, you have to have breached the rules of the game. Nothing in the rulebook about the haka.

And surely it is impossible to award a penalty when the match hasn't even started.

There has been plenty of haka hi-jinks over the years. Teams marching menacingly toward the Maori challenge, some even getting face-to-face, close enough to hongi; others have simply turned their backs on it.

At one point things got sufficiently out of hand that the arbiters of international rugby drew up some protocols for what is termed "any cultural ceremony and/or team challenge" - the word "haka" does not appear in any sub-section of the regulations.

So, for the benefit of the Lions (and the players from Rangitikei College), those performing the challenge must not cross their 10-metre line, and neither must the team on the receiving end cross theirs.