The glittering international rugby career of legendary Wallabies captain John Eales has just one black mark - the decision not to face the All Blacks haka at Athletic Park in 1996.
Asked by Inside Sport magazine if Eales, who locked the Australian scrum in 86 tests between 1991 and 2001, had
any regrets about his career he pinpointed the Bledisloe Cup clash in Wellington.
"I just have one regret.
"Turning our back on the haka in '96.
"We always used to just face it.
"But this time, between the team leadership, we decided we wouldn't face it.
"Instead, we did warm-up drills down the other end.
"We got badly beaten (43-6) and deserved to be.
"Yeah, I was ashamed... how little respect was shown to a very rich tradition of the game. I'm still embarrassed by it."
Eales was captain that day and made the decision in conjunction with coach Greg Smith.
The All Blacks responded to the slight by scoring six tries despite a muddy ground and terrible weather conditions in what is regarded as one of their finest test performances.
- NZPA
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