How the Haka Found Trinity

By Coach Jason Dibble
In the spring of 2005 in the A325 computer lab, three Trinity football players surfed the web looking for stock tips, but they somehow wound up on a web site of a world famous New Zealand rugby team. At first, the boys were scolded for not checking out a stock market web site. Then one of them said, “Coach, check this out; you guys ought to do this. It would be awesome!”

The instructor agreed, and the idea was presented to some of the boys who danced with the Polynesian Club. The Tongan community was consulted, and the idea was brought to the head football coach. During the off-season, an instructional video was made. The team was taught the words, moves and the meaning of the original Haka which means “to ignite the breath.” 

On a rainy day before spring football, the Trojans met in the weight room to do the Haka for the first time as a team. From the very beginning, it was special.  Having never practiced as a group, the team became one moving in unison.

The Trojans practiced all spring and into the fall of 2005.  The Haka was introduced to Hurst-Euless-Bedford ISD at Pennington Field before the first game against DeSoto.  The first team to do the Haka went on to win the 5A Division I State Championship.

Trinity practices the Haka to “ignite the breath”, energize the body and inspire the spirit. It is a collective frenzy, a united front, and a feeling of unity-a feeling of one!

Rebirth of the Haka

This was taken from the old website, published prior to the 2009 season.  I felt it was appropriate to bring this over to the new site as well.

Beginning in three distinct groups, the conch shell sounds and the team comes together as one.  Symbolic of "three rivers merging into one," Coach Lineweaver says, "it also represents the diversity of Trinity High School and the football team with many cultures coming together into one family."  And this is only the first few seconds of the new Haka Trinity presented on Monday, September 7.  The leader goes on to issue two challenges to the team, to which they reply with an emphatic "IO," or yes in the native tongue.  The third challenge is issued to the team and the fans, who reply with an "IO, IO," two yes' giving even more of an emphatic, "[heck] yeah," according to the new Haka's author, Richie Kautai. 

Richie continued by citing the decision for the new Haka being fueled by this years team's intense desire to make the Haka their own.  It was with this desire that Assistant Coach Jason Dibble and Richie came together to discuss important themes of the Trinity football program.  With these themes in mind, Richie "wrote and choreographed the new Haka, taught it to the team, and they made it [even better]," he said, focusing on the importance of each movement and word.  Since 2005 our Haka has been done in the Maori tongue, but this year it is done in Tongan making it unique to 2009 Trinity football.  The Trinity Haka was birthed in 2005 out of the Ka'mate Haka, inspired by the New Zealand All Blacks rugby team.  "If that was the birth of the Haka at Trinity, then this is the rebirth," Richie said.

Friday Nigh Lights, REAL LIFE

This article appeared in the Colleyville Courier Friday, November 7.
by Dr. Cindy Ryan

Suppose your high school son was a quarterback for a local 5-A football team. Suppose it was one of those “rebuilding years” where the team is young and where winning is elusive. Suppose then, toward the end of this character building football season, that your son’s team had to play the No. 1 team in the district; who happen to also be first in the entire state; actually, this team is ranked at the very top of all high school football teams in the nation.

Suppose this highly ranked team was also very large, very strong and had quite a bit of team spirit as well. Would you as this hypothetical parent of this hypothetical quarterback be scared out of your wits when Friday night rolled around?

My mother, on her way to the game, stopped at a local establishment and was waited on by the sister of one of the defensive players for the other team.  The sister said, “My brother is No. 99; he loves to devour quarterbacks.”

For some reason, my mother did not withhold this information from me prior to the game.

When this very large team came out on the field, they stood in the smoke from the inflatables each team runs through before the game.  As the eerie white smoke wafted up from the field, they began their pre-game dance. As one body, they danced and chanted confidently.  Then, from the back, as all the players crouched in unison, No. 99 rose up from their midst, evidently the captain of this huge team.  He walked among his team, yelling something at them. In unison, they chanted back.

All I could see was white smoke, unity, muscles and girth; I thought I would pass out.  The game started. My son and his teammates took the field.

Since this is hypothetical, I’d rather not name any names, but I’d just like to say that what I experienced that Friday night was not at all what I had anticipated.  You don’t necessarily expect to find mercy, grace and class in the midst of Texas high school football, but this very big, very scary team had it all.  The big team won and won decisively.

But, they didn’t try to pummel us. The score wasn’t 199-0. They didn’t seem to gloat over the fact that we were having the “character building” season and they were not.

They didn’t try to sack my hypothetical quarterback, not even once.

It seemed they were well-coached, well-mannered young men who just play great football and have a really cool victory dance.

Once we finish this hypothetical football season, I’m rooting for those guys.

Dr. Cindy Ryan is a pastor and writer. Contact her at dr.cindy.ryan@tx.rr.com.

Editor’s Note: In case this column is too hypothetical for you, Dr. Ryan could be referring to the game three weeks ago between Grapevine High School and Trinity High School, which THS won 45-0.