All Blacks boss on Ma'a Nonu: 'We knew it was coming'
REACTION: New Zealand head coach Dave Rennie said he knew before a 54-0 tour victory over the Sharks in Durban on Tuesday that All Black legend Ma’a Nonu would perform a solo haka.
After the All Blacks performed a traditional pre-match haka, 44-year-old Sharks substitute Nonu stepped forward and delivered a response.
“We knew the Ma’a haka was coming,” said Rennie, whose team scored eight tries in wet and chilly conditions for a second straight win since the South African tour kicked off last Friday.
“Ma’a came and saw our defence coach Tana Umaga last night [Monday] and said he wanted to be respectful and queried about the right way to respond to the haka,” Rennie told reporters.
Nonu later said: “On behalf of myself and my family, I thought it was the right thing to do, to answer the boys and the All Blacks.
“It was such a privilege and an honour, and to do the haka, showing my respect on behalf of my family to the team I love.
“I got nearly 20 minutes off the bench. I tried my best. It was great to see the New Zealand boys.
“The All Blacks opened up in the last 30 minutes and I was chasing my tail. Credit to them, they are improving, and all the best to the brothers for the next game.”
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Double Rugby World Cup winner Nonu joined the Sharks as a mentor last month.
“Ma’a has been good for the guys, especially the backs. He is a great addition off the field, helping the youngsters prepare, warm up and get their mindset right,” said Pietersen.
“He spoke to Tana about how to respond to the tradition of the haka, but was nervous about doing it by himself.”
Nonu came off the bench after 62 minutes, by which stage the Sharks were trailing 0-35. Just one minute later, scrumhalf Kyle Preston scored the sixth try for the tourists.
“Conditions made it challenging to shift a lot of ball, but it was a really solid defensive effort,” said Rennie, who succeeded Scott Robertson as head coach last March.
“The last 40 minutes were very positive. I thought we kicked really well, our kicks in the central area of the field found a lot of space. Our option taking was pretty good.
“We gave away a lot of early penalties, so we struggled to get our hands on the ball. In the second half we were a lot more clinical and kicked really well.
“The response after our chat at half-time was good to see, because every penalty we concede is a chance for the opposition to slow the game down.”
New Zealand inside centre Jordie Barrett was voted man of the match. He scored a try and set up several others with superb cross-field kicks.
“It was a pretty greasy surface and there was lots of water underfoot. So we are pretty proud that we backed our skills and got ascendancy after a tight first half.
“We need to tidy up our discipline and we let the Sharks into our 22 in the first 10 minutes. So the second half was about minimising those entries.”
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