Footy fans stunned by breathtaking Haka and Indigenous War Cry to kick off NRL All-Stars: ‘So much emotion. So much connection to culture’

Footy is finally back and the NRL All Stars made a spine-tingling return to the field on Friday with their respective Māori Haka and Indigenous War Cry pre-game rituals in Townsville.

Some of the biggest names in football, including Latrell Mitchell, Dane Gagai and Jahrome Hughes, lined up for the annual representative match which features prominently in the preparation for the NRL regular season.

But it was the performances before the football itself had even started that mesmerized the fans.

In the midst of heavy rain in Townsville, the Indigenous and Māori teams emerged from the Queensland Country Bank Stadium tunnel, led by their respective captains, Latrell Mitchell and Joseph Tapine.

The Māori men started the action by surrounding Knights attacker Leo Thompson. Kodi Nikorima and Dane Gagai were also key figures in the Haka.

Māori captain Joseph Tapine sent shivers down the spines of those watching in the stadium

The performance culminated in a powerful confrontation between former Warriors teammates Josh Curran and Jazz Tevaga, where they went forehead to forehead and stared intently at each other.

“My goodness,” Dan Ginnane said on Fox League. “At the bottom of the screen, I hope you saw Josh Curran looking at former Warriors teammate Jazz Tevaga.

‘That was sensational. It’s really exciting, isn’t it?

‘And now the respect came after the challenges. Two very different styles, but no less meaningful than each other.

“Now the challenge: you have to get up for a football match.”

Josh Addo Carr takes great pride in playing the All Stars match, scoring two tries in a match-winning performance

Fellow commentator Michael Ennis said: ‘It’s always difficult. We have seen so many emotions.

‘The pride and the passion, it is always so fascinating that it almost leaves you speechless.

“I see the emotion of both of these warriors coming together, and the emotion of two former teammates coming together, looking at each other, forehead to forehead.

“How do they regain their emotions and prepare for a football team?”

And fans at home loved it too, taking to social media to share their thoughts on the spine-tingling cultural displays held before the match.

“The rallying cry of the Indigenous All Stars was surreal. I love how much effort they put into that performance. I don’t think we’ve seen such a cultural display from them before, have we?’ one fan asked.

‘There is something magical and enchanting about the indigenous war cry and Māori Haka. It’s a fantastic showpiece and curtain raiser for the NRL seasons,” another added

‘Tinking war cries as always. Absolutely brilliant to watch. Brilliant respect from the crowd too,” another football fan posted on X.

Meanwhile, in the footy itself, Indigenous captain Latrell Mitchell said the best defensive performance he has ever seen took his side to a 22-14 win against their Māori counterparts in Townsville.

“With our attacking arsenal we have the best attacking team in the world, but we have shown that we can also defend,” he said.

“That was the best defensive performance I’ve ever seen.

“The boys played footy and had fun, that was my clearest message, play simple and stand behind your abilities, be proud of who you are and Bob is your uncle.”

Addo Carr and the Indigenous All Stars celebrate a try at Queensland Country Bank Stadium

Indigenous All Stars captain Latrell Mitchell poses with the Arthur Beetson Trophy

Māori coach Adam Blair bemoaned his side’s inability to break through when they were winning the territory battle so thoroughly.

“There were moments during the match where we had our chances, we built up enough pressure,” he said.

“But you have to give credit to the native boys, they scratched well… we had almost 20 minutes on their tryline.

“They worked hard for each other and that’s what this game does when you represent your people, there’s something else at stake.”