By james art Marler angered the All Blacks ahead of Saturday’s clash at Allianz Stadium by using social media to call for the pre-match Maori war dance to be “banned”, adding it was “ridiculous”.
The veteran, who sat out the autumn opener for personal reasons, has since apologized for the remarks, but Barrett suggests the damage has already been done.
“He probably loaded the gun, didn’t he?” the second row said after New Zealand’s final training session on Friday.
Hello rugby fans. Just wanted to chime in here and apologize to the New Zealand fans I upset with my poorly worded tweet earlier in the week. I didn’t mean any malice by asking to be blocked, I just want to see the restrictions removed to allow a reply without penalty. 1/3 pic.twitter.com/Nbft2DIyhf
— Joe Marler (@JoeMarler) October 31, 2024
“I suppose there are always opinions about the Haka and his place. It’s hugely important to us and has been to the All Blacks for a long time. We get a lot of it.
“It was a huge part of the All Blacks. It’s bigger than rugby in a way. You talk to people from America and lesser-known rugby nations and they know New Zealand rugby about the Haka, so that’s massive for us and brings us together.”
England are considering what their response will be – if any – when the Haka is thrown in the first of four Tests at Twickenham this month.
“In those moments, whatever the team brings and whatever you face, you love it,” he said.
A view of Twickenham 🇬🇧 pic.twitter.com/9hGGEIG2wh
— All Blacks (@AllBlacks) October 31, 2024
“If they’re going forward, that means they’re ready for the first whistle. If that happens, we know we are in for a good Test match.
“We don’t need any extra motivation for Twickenham against a team that will be desperate to beat us, so we have to respect what’s coming.”
There have only been two Tests between the rivals in London in the last decade, giving value to the rarity of Saturday’s clash.
The All Blacks won their summer series 2-0 but the clashes in Dunedin and Auckland were tight, with just eight points separating the sides over the two legs.
“England haven’t had a Test match since they played us in July so they’ll have that stone in their shoe that they’ve had for a while and they’ll be looking to shake that off with a good performance,” Barrett said.
“Preliminarily they are always a threat – George Martin, Jamie George, Maro Itoje. They have a strong bond there.
“If they get a line and a fastball to Marcus Smith and the backs they have, you can find yourself chasing the play. So it’s about controlling the breakdown and getting a good ball. It’s going to be hand-to-hand combat.