Gary Lineker momentarily ventured in the sphere of rugby commentary only to quickly backtrack after he received heavy criticism for his comments about the Haka.
When retweeting New Zealand's pre-match against Canada, Lineker said "Must be hard not to just laugh at this if you're the opposition."
He has since deleted the Tweet in the wake of backlash.
But they have won the World Cup three times…one would be nice eh? 👀😂
— Rugby World Cup (@rugbyworldcup) October 2, 2019
— Simon Zebo (@SimonZebo) October 2, 2019
Very naive comment coming from somebody who’s played sport at the top level. The Haka is hugely culturally respected and facing it is one of the most spine-tingling experiences as a player. So no - trust me - laughing isn’t on the radar .... https://t.co/KnTPwGxJo0
— Lee Byrne (@byrney_15) October 2, 2019
Even Piers Morgan was able to get on his high horse about it.
Harder not to laugh at Spurs, on balance. The Haka is one of the greatest spectacles in sport, and of huge cultural importance in New Zealand. Weird that you would mock it. https://t.co/GLg6tGATBt
— Piers Morgan (@piersmorgan) October 2, 2019
After deleting the Tweet, Lineker explained himself to New Zealand journalist, John Campbell, saying:
I’ve deleted the tweet as it wasn’t intended that way in the slightest. I was just wondering why as an opposing sportsmen it would be in anyway intimidating after seeing it for so many years. I should probably have phrased it that way.
I’ve deleted the tweet as it wasn’t intended that way in the slightest. I was just wondering why as an opposing sportsmen it would be in anyway intimidating after seeing it for so many years. I should probably have phrased it that way.
— Gary Lineker (@GaryLineker) October 2, 2019
Needless to say, he got a few 'It's hard not to laugh at Spurs' replies as well.
