Scotland v New Zealand: Tackling the Haka

While the Haka has come under fire recently in the English press, Andy Robinson was keen to play down any suggestion that the ritual dance and chant should be excluded from the game.

"I like it!" was the Scotland coach's cheery response, although he went on to warn against over-analysing the whole affair. "You face it, you smile, you deal with it and you get on with the game," he suggests. "It's important not to get overexcited by it."

Robinson himself only faced the Haka once as a player, when turning out for the South West of England, but he was part of the Lions coaching team that came up with the idea of persuading Brian O'Driscoll to throw some grass to indicate that the challenge had been accepted. Minutes later the Lions skipper was out of the match and out of the tour after being spear tackled by Tana Umaga and Keven Mealamu. Despite the fact that Maori elders had reportedly given their blessing, the grass-throwing incident was deemed unacceptable in some quarters.

When Wales attempted to move the Haka ahead of the twin national anthems a few years back the Kiwis performed the ritual in the privacy of their Millennium Stadium dressing room rather than concede the point. Opposition teams are not even allowed to imitate the Willie Anderson/Richard Cockerill challenge by advancing on it. The IRB recently fined the Wallaroos (Australia's ladies) US$2000 for doing exactly that.

The Haka is great theatre and it enjoys a long tradition, but very obviously gives one side a clear psychological advantage immediately before the start of a match. In the professional rugby world where results are everything that is an anachronism that won't last forever.