April 02, 2024
Rugby not ready for Māori union
Te Tairawhiti MP and former Ngāti Porou East Coast Rugby chief executive Cushla Tangaere-Manuel doesn’t believe it’s time for a breakaway Māori rugby union – but she wants to see more Māori input into the administration of the national game.
Having been part of a review panel that considered greater autonomy for Maori rugby, she says other improvements were tried instead.
Since then New Zealand Rugby has come a long way – but it still struggles to fully recognise the contribution of Māori to the sport.
“Not only the cultural values that kaupapa Maori brings to the game, but the economics… what sells? Our motifs, our Maori designs, are all over it. What do people think is synonymous with New Zealand rugby? The haka,” she says.
Ms Tangaere-Manuel says it is possible Maori may decide to give up their mandatory position on the rugby board in favour of more maori autonomy – but that’s a decision for all Maori rugby representatives to make.