By GREGG WYCHERLEY
The All Blacks are angry that preparations for the traditional pre-match haka were disrupted by a brass marching band before the test against the French.
Australian referee Wayne Erickson, who had a shocking day awarding two wrong tries, raised All Black hackles after his attempts to manhandle the haka before the Armistice Day test against France at the weekend.
All Blacks first-five eighths Andrew Mehrtens said he had been concerned the haka might become "a circus act" after the brass band was allowed to march between the teams and Erickson waved the All Blacks back from the halfway line.
"We wanted to start the haka and he came up and said, 'Move back.'
"I said, 'Wayne, you come on when the game starts,' and he said, 'No, I'm coming on now.'
"He saw his job as a choreographer for the haka, maybe," said Mehrtens.
"They put us on the 10m line and the other team on the other 10m - 20m between us is not what it's all about.
"I'm sure the other teams don't want to see it down-graded like that."
The haka has been the centre of controversy before, including at the last Rugby World Cup, when the Tongans began their war chant at the same time as the haka and then turned their backs.
The English showed scant respect also, with coach Clive Woodward's "I don't give a monkey's" comment and hooker Richard Cockerill eyeballing All Black hooker Norm Hewitt.
The Australians did their best to drown out the haka in Sydney, with the crowd singing Waltzing Matilda.
Viewers of the Armistice Day test had an unscheduled second minute of silence during the haka on the French television broadcast.
But perhaps the tactics backfired, as the All Blacks won 39-26 and referee Erickson went on to have one of his worst test matches.
href="http://www.nzherald.co.nz/storydisplay.cfm?storyID=159627&thesection=Story&thesubsection=&reportID=56528">Test schedule/scoreboard
All Blacks seeing red at disruption to haka
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