On the sporting front, what could be better than the Boks fronting up to the Maori challenge at Soweto* in a 120,000 seater stadium.

The original problem was that the South African teams were not allowed to play against  teams selected on racial grounds.

The solution is admirably simple yet sensible:

The instruction came after SARU’s council accepted a recommendation from the management committee that the union should “accept matches against any teams sanctioned by the national governing body of that team”.

There is of course a certain irony.

As recently as 1970, New Zealand was prepared to accept sending a whites only All Black team.

Yet here we are nearly 40 years later aching to send a Maori-only team to South Africa.

The last word:  for a long time, I thought that Soweto must have had some  cultural meaning or significance … it had to be native word of some standing.

Imagine my disappointment when I found out that Soweto was actually short for South Western Township.  Not a Zulu word as far as I can tell.

And good on him too.

Too much of the New Zealand sporting public acts like they’re been at the bottom of too many rucks or gone too many rounds with Mike Tyson.  Without head protection.  And without ear muffs.

Over recent weeks, there’s been a couple of issues that are inter-related.

First, the acknowledgement of property rights for “the” haka (Te Rauparaha’s Ka Mate haka).

Second, the possibility that South Africa may not allow the NZ Maori team to tour.

The property rights for the haka is so obvious – particularly given the way in which the NZRFU protects its own rights. As Boock has pointed out, try selling a black t shirt with a silver fern on it and see how long before the NZRFU sends in its legal bovver boys.

A few years back, I seem to recall the AB’s using the Rolling Stones “Paint It Black” as the basis for an advertising campaign. Rights were negotiated with the Stones (from memory it involved beer, tickets and signed jerseys). Point is – you have property rights, you protect them.

That does NOT mean you stop everyone from signing Paint It Black – you simply protect its exploitation. Same with the haka.

The second issue is interesting because those who’ve spent too much time at the bottom of the ruck will say that the NZ Maori team is discriminatory. So is the NZ Women’s team, the NZ University team, and the NZ Under 19’s. Each has different criteria for representation.

As noted by a former race relations conciliator, the NZ Maori team is NOT the NZ team. The team does not claim to be representative of ALL NZ, just Maori. I’d also argue that the Maori would argue it’s normally not representative of all Maori either as the AB selectors (plus the pillaging Northern Clubs) take care of that.

Sadly, as Boock points out, these episodes have brought out the worst of the NZ sporting mindset (if that isn’t an oxymoron).

Funny thing is, if the Maori were to play the Boks next weekend, the same meatheads would be pissed in the cheap seats supporting the Maori.

So big ups to the team at NZsport – now, do I get any prizes for the most gratuitous plug for another site??

While I’m at it, it was also great to come across a decent NZ rugby site (from the same above source) that provided some decent grass-roots analysis of rugby issues – the Silver Fern.

Bartman recently wrote about the NZRU decision to can the Maori AB’s in 2009.

Frankly, the NZRU seems to have got away with the proverbial by planning to put the Maori AB’s into cotton wool this year.

As Bartman notes:

watching the Junior All Blacks is like watching the second XV at school – only mums, dads and girlfriends turn up.

Mind you, over the professional era, the Maori have consistently struggled to get access to their number one team.

One of the main criticisms of NZ rugby over recent years has been the willingness to sacrifice rugby’s heritage over dollars.  To be francis, in the main, I tend to accept the need for change but this is one of those occasions where common sense should have been applied.

Beyond the playing field, The Maori team has a pivotal part to play in the politics of rugby.

The sad and embarassing willingness of NZ’s acceptance of white rugby teams touring SA has to be balanced with the frankly bizarre tradition of NZ Maori playing SA, including the infamous 1981 Tour.

The inaugural tour by the Springboks in 1921 featured a game against the NZ Maori (ironically in Napier where the 1981 team also played) leading to a South African journalist to send a cable back home:

BAD ENOUGH HAVING TO PLAY OFFICIALLY DESIGNATED NEW ZEALAND NATIVES, BUT SPECTACLE THOUSANDS EUROPEANS FRANTICALLY CHEERING ON BAND OF COLOURED MEN TO DEFEAT MEMBERS OF OWN RACE WAS TOO MUCH FOR SPRINGBOKS WHO FRANKLY DISGUSTED.

OK, so that was almost 90 years ago.

Things are definitely going to be a lot tougher in terms of economic measurements.  Gee, some of the AB’s won’t be drive new Fords!

But to risk throwing away the legacy of the NZ Maori in the name of short term cost saving doesn’t make cents or sense.