Historic haka to honour heroes Lomu and Haiu

Bespoke war dance will be the first of its kind when the Lions face Auckland Blues today

The decision by Auckland Blues to commission their own haka, which will be performed for the first time to the British and Irish Lions at Eden Park today, was inspired by the deaths of former players Jonah Lomu and Kurtis Haiu, The Talk of Rugby can disclose.

The Lions will face the first haka outside of the Test series against the All Blacks and the match against New Zealand Maori. Canterbury Crusaders and Waitako Chiefs are also due to perform bespoke war dances prior to kick-off in their matches against the Lions on the 10-match tour.

The Blues decided to commission their haka following the deaths of Lomu, the All Blacks legend, and Kurtis Haiu, who played 53 times for the Blues between 2006 and 2011. He died from cancer at the age of 31 last year. Auckland-born Lomu, who won 63 caps for the All Blacks, began his illustrious career at the Blues in 1996. He died at the age of 40 in 2015 from a heart attack.

“We realised we had something missing when we lost a couple of really important players from here – Kurtis Haiu and Jonah Lomu,” said Tony Hanks, the former Wasps and Sale head coach who has been the Blues’ manager of high performance since 2014.

“With New Zealand and the way we mourn, you have the haka or a song. So we felt we needed something to represent us.

“We had one of our local boys that played for our development side a bit who played for Auckland come up, and he worked closely with Tana [Umaga, the Blues head coach] to capture things around the area. We talk about who we represent across the region.

“This is an aspirational piece for us with the big crowd, and performing the haka for the first time. These guys have got a big responsibility and we take that seriously. Whoever leads it, it’ll be a huge moment for them and their families. They’ll be the first ever.”

The Blues’ haka is called He Toa Takitini (The Strength of Many), to reflect the many cultures in the squad.

The Talk of Rugby revealed last week that the Lions do not have a special plan to face the haka, with head coach Warren Gatland insisting: “We’ll just face up to it.”

One thing is certain: it will be an emotional, as well as historic moment for both sides.

‘It will be a huge moment for the guys and their families. They will be the first ever’