Northern Edition

Select Edition

Northern Northern
Southern Southern
Global Global
New Zealand New Zealand
France France

'Ma'a Nonu looked unbelievable': England's failed motivational video before playing All Blacks

(Photo by Rob Jefferies/Getty Images)

Former England international James Haskell has recalled how former coach Martin Johnson’s motivational methods went pear-shaped on two occasions against the All Blacks.

ADVERTISEMENT

After England’s 2007 World Cup final appearance, the former England captain took over the head coaching role from 2008 to 2011 and in his first season as head coach completed a two-Test tour of New Zealand.

Speaking on RugbyPass’ The Offload podcast, Haskell recalled how one video the management team showed them backfired after they failed to include highlights of any England players and instead ended up showing the team how good the All Blacks were.

Video Spacer
Video Spacer

“They quite liked the motivational video, back in the day,” Haskell recalled of his early years in the England team.

“As you lads can know, it can go horribly wrong, the motivational video.

“They thought it was a good idea, the first one was remixed to the 300 [movie], with “hold the line”, and they put into it Gerard Butler going “hold!” and then it was Ma’a Nonu sidestepping through everyone.

“And it was really weird because it was like “hold the line” and Ma’a Nonu, but Ma’a Nonu looked unbelievable.

“I came out of it and was like ‘f***, New Zealand are amazing’, there wasn’t any clips of us.

“When they starting playing it, Joe Worsley just fell on the floor burst into hysterical laughing. The roar went up.

ADVERTISEMENT

“They were in the other room going ‘right lads we’ve motivated them, they’ll be so ready for it’.

“They heard us laughing and the video guy was on like suicide watch, they confiscated his laptop, shoelaces and belt because we were going ‘mate, what the f*** was that’.”

The 2008 tour of New Zealand didn’t end well for England after a 37-20 loss in the first Test in Auckland, a heavy 44-12 loss was suffered in the second with Ma’a Nonu bagging a try.

On the 2008 end of year tour the All Blacks travelled to England for a one-off test where another video was put together but the video fell flat after a malfunction.

ADVERTISEMENT

England suffered a 32-6 loss with two tries to Mils Muliaina and one to Ma’a Nonu.

“The worst one was, again we were playing New Zealand,” he said.

“All week we were talking about New Zealand and they put on this video during the team run.

“We were at Twickenham Stadium, all the kits laid out for the warm-up, they played this video on the big screen and basically it goes ‘England versus New Zealand, November, 2008’ or whenever it was.

“It’s one of the scenes from Goodfellas where one of the Neighbours gropes the guy’s wife, Ray Liotta’s wife, but there is no sound.

“You see this guy walk up, get a gun and pistol whip this guy onto the floor.. we were there like ‘what the f***’ and then [at the end of the video] it says ‘bring the violence’.

“Obviously you could tell it was a fault as there was no sound. Well we’ve run out and I’ve gone ‘well I’m confused, do I need to bring a gun tomorrow to play New Zealand?”

“You would’ve thought they would’ve gone and binned that but no, day of the game on the bus, hit it. Same thing but with sound this time.

“The best thing is we only got pumped by 30 points. What is beating someone with a pistol got to do with the game?”

ADVERTISEMENT

Kubota Spears vs Tokyo Sungoliath | Japan Rugby League One 2024/25 | Quarter Final Replay

Australia vs USA | Pacific Four Series 2025 | Full Match Replay

New Zealand vs Canada | Pacific Four Series 2025 | Full Match Replay

South Africa vs New Zealand | The Rugby Championship U20's | Full Match Replay

Argentina vs Australia | The Rugby Championship U20's | Full Match Replay

The Game that Made Jonah Lomu

The gruelling reality behind one of the fastest sports in the world | The Report

Boks Office | Episode 40 | The Steven Kitshoff Special

Trending on RugbyPass

Comments

2 Comments
N
Northandsouth 848 days ago

I feel for coaches on this a little. You're trying to motivate a different with completely different tastes and views, week in and week out for months. You probably have to get playful and creative to try and keep it fresh and you're going to have some misfires and lost in translations along the way. Funny to hear specific examples though

P
Poe 848 days ago

Wow. What an insight into the madness. I'd love to hear stories of Eddie's strange ideas. Wasn't there a catching session with football goal keepers at one point?

Join free and tell us what you really think!

Sign up for free
ADVERTISEMENT

Latest Features

Comments on RugbyPass

S
Solenn Bonnet 8 days ago
Leinster cleanse palette with record URC scoreline against Zebre

My name is Solenn Bonnet, and I am a single mother navigating the challenges of raising my two-year-old child while trying to make ends meet. I came across a trading platform that promised astonishing daily profits of 18%. The allure of such a high return on investment was too tempting to resist, and I found myself drawn into cryptocurrency trading. Excited by the prospect of financial freedom, I invested a significant amount of my savings, totaling over 5.7 BTC. However, what started as a hopeful venture quickly turned into a nightmare. The platform was a scam, and I lost everything I had invested. The emotional toll of this loss was immense; I felt devastated and helpless, struggling to provide for my child and keep up with my bills. In my desperate attempt to recover my funds, I sought help from various recovery experts. Unfortunately, I encountered numerous fraudulent individuals who claimed they could help me retrieve my lost money. Each time I reached out, I was met with disappointment and further scams, which only deepened my despair. Last year was one of the most challenging periods of my life, filled with anxiety and uncertainty about my financial future. Feeling overwhelmed and at a loss, I confided in a close friend from church about my situation. She listened compassionately and shared her own experiences with financial difficulties. Understanding my plight, she introduced me to Tech Cyber Force Recovery, a group of skilled hackers known for their expertise in recovering lost funds. Skeptical yet hopeful, I decided to reach out to them as a last resort. Their services came at a higher cost, but my friend generously offered to help me with a partial payment. I was amazed by how quickly they responded and began the recovery process. Their team was professional, efficient, and incredibly supportive throughout the entire ordeal. To my relief, they successfully recovered more than I had lost to those heartless scammers. This was truly transformative, and I felt a sense of relief and gratitude that I hadn’t felt in a long time. I strongly encourage anyone who has faced similar challenges or fallen victim to scams to reach out to Tech Cyber Force Recovery. If you’ve invested in a fraudulent platform like I did, they are highly capable of helping you reclaim your hard-earned money. Don’t lose hope; there is a way to recover what you’ve lost.

CONSULT TECH CYBER FORCE RECOVERY

EMAIL.. support@techyforcecyberretrieval.com

WhatsApp.. +15617263697

website.. https://techyforcecyberretrieval.com

Telegram.. +15617263697

0 Go to comments
TRENDING
TRENDING The Kwagga Smith fairytale is sadly over The Kwagga Smith fairytale is sady over
Search