Worldwide haka on Twitter

SCOTT HAMMOND/ The Marlborough Express

TWAKA TIME: Torea Wines co-owner Stuart Smith has combined his life-long love for the All Blacks with the internet to create an online haka sensation, the twaka, to rally global support for his favourite team.

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One Marlborough man's die-hard rugby passion has seen a virtual haka travel around the world.

Stuart Smith, co-owner of Torea Wines and chairman of New Zealand Winegrowers, has invented the twaka - a virtual haka -  on Twitter, a free online social networking service.

Participants simply type in the first words of the haka into their Twitter feed to show their support for our rugby team.

Mr Smith said he was fed up with the All Blacks' poor performances early in the season, and wanted to rally online support for his favourite team.

He and his friend Jamie Roy came up with the idea of the twaka during Maori Language Week in July.

He started encouraging friends and contacts to type lyrics of the haka chant into their Twitter site.

Hundreds of twitterers all over the globe caught on.

"I love it. People on the other side of the world are getting connected through this. It raises awareness about the Maori culture and how unique it is."

Mr Smith is surprised at the feedback, with communication ranging from a video of a man doing the haka in downtown Tokyo, to messages from people in Bulgaria and the United States.

"I think it's amazing. To have someone in Bulgaria up at 2am in the morning involved with a twaka it's quite unusual."

Torea Wines' Twitter page has 1653 followers, but Mr Smith reckons the twaka is not a promotional or marketing tool it's simply about having fun.

"It's about a frustrated All Blacks fan, filled with disappointment at the All Blacks' performance up until last week, who just wanted to support them."

As for how many people took part in the twaka, it is impossible to know.

"I believe it is more a means of communication than anything else. It gives people a voice," Mr Smith said.

So, can the twaka be credited for the All Blacks' narrow win on Saturday night against Australia? "Absolutely."

Kiwi spreads support for ABs via YouTube

Former Blenheim man Michael Todd has taken his support for an online version of the haka to the streets of Tokyo performing the real thing as bemused shoppers looked on.

Mr Todd hopes the twaka will become a tradition before All Blacks games in the future.

The social media marketer lives in the Shinjuku district of the Japanese capital. He worked with business partner Jamie Roy and Stuart Smith of Torea Wines to get the twaka off the ground.

You can see him performing a haka in one of Tokyo's busiest shopping areas, Shibuya, on the video-sharing site YouTube.

The 46-year-old said the twaka had "spread like wildfire".

"I think it's just fantastic to show that there's a language other than English in New Zealand.

"It's an easy way to promote New Zealand and the All Blacks."

Mr Todd is determined to keep the twaka going. "I've always been a huge fan of the All Blacks and I've always loved the haka."

Although Mr Todd makes the trip back to New Zealand a couple of times a year, he has not returned to Marlborough in eight years.

Check out Mr Todd's video:

- The Marlborough Express