New Zealand Maori rugby team
 |
|
| Union | NZRU |
|---|---|
| Emblem(s) | Silver fern |
| Coach(es) | Colin Cooper |
| Captain(s) | Ash Dixon |
| First match | |
 Hawke's Bay 0–5 New Zealand Natives  (23 June 1888) |
|
| Largest win | |
 British Columbia 3–111 New Zealand Māori (9 June 2004) |
|
| Largest defeat | |
New Zealand Māori 0–37 South Africa  (25 August 1956) |
|
| Official website | |
| www |
|
The Māori All Blacks, previously called the New Zealand Māori, are a rugby union team from New Zealand. A representative team of the New Zealand Rugby Union, a prerequisite for playing in the team is that the player has Māori whakapapa (genealogy). In the past this rule was not strictly applied; non–Māori players who looked Māori were often selected in the team. These included a few Pacific island players and a couple of African descent. Today all players have their ancestry verified before selection in the team.
The team's first match was in 1888 against Hawke's Bay. This was followed by a tour of Europe in 1888 and 1889 where the team played their first games against national teams, beating Ireland in Dublin before losing to Wales and England. Their early uniforms consisted of a black jersey with a silver fern and white knickerbockers. The New Zealand Māori perform a haka—a Māori challenge or posture dance—before each match. The haka was later adopted by the New Zealand national team, the All Blacks, as were their black shirts. In 2001, the Māori first performed the "Timatanga" haka, which describes the evolution of life and the creation of New Zealand from the four winds.
Since being given official status in 1910, the New Zealand Maori have selected some of rugby union's great players, including fullback George Nepia who played 46 games for New Zealand from 1924–30, halfback Sid Going who played 86 matches for his country and former New Zealand captain Tane Norton, who represented New Zealand in 61 games, including 27 tests, and later became president of the New Zealand Rugby Union.
...
Wikipedia