The contrast between the Ellis Park crowd and the one gathered at the Cape Town Stadium over the weekend was clear for all to see.
The All Blacks performed their haka in front of the Springboks during their Rugby Championship clash, and unlike in Johannesburg a week prior, the fans gathered in the Cape were shining example of a respectful crowd.
Though the crowd were singing Ole Ole before the start of the haka, as soon as the war cry began, the stadium fell silent.
The All Blacks could then be heard throughout the stadium, as they issued their challenge to the hosts.
From a roar to a whisper: The capacity crowd at Cape Town Stadium (completely dominated by Springbok fans) allows the haka to echo around the ground.
— Jon Cardinelli (@jon_cardinelli) September 8, 2024
Don't think I've ever experienced this at a SA ground before, not even at Newlands. pic.twitter.com/ua5WrpyeQa
‘Respect the haka’
The big screen also helped the situation as it had the message ‘respect the haka’ pasted across the bottom of the live video feed.
The issue of respecting the haka, or not, has been a hotly-debated topic since this IOL journalist wrote “Why the Springboks’ crowd was a disgrace for singing ‘Ole Ole’ during the All Blacks’ haka.”
In that story I mentioned the fact that it was not the first time that the crowd had behaved in such a manner.
It prompted a number of fierce reactions, with many saying the haka should be respected and just as many saying it was outdated and didn’t warrant that respect.
In a small poll conducted by IOL, 65% said the haka should be respected, while 13% said it should be drowned out and an even greater number (20%) said it didn’t really matter.
* The views expressed are not necessarily the views of IOL or Independent Media.
** JOIN THE CONVERSATION: Send us an email with your comments, thoughts or responses to iolletters@inl.co.za. Letters should be a maximum of 500 words, and may be edited for length. Anonymous correspondence will not be published. Submissions should include a contact number and physical address (not for publication).