Brasil Rugby CEO Agustín Danza has hailed the historic visit of the Maori All Blacks as a success on all levels.

A tremendous crowd of 34,450 flocked to the Morumbí Stadium on 10 November to see a game that was far more competitive than the 35-3 scoreline in favour of the visitors suggests.

“The visit was certainly a success in every aspect,” said Danza. 

“From a sporting sense, it was good for our players to be able to show that they can be competitive against a team with Super Rugby players and a handful of guys that a week earlier played for the All Blacks. That breeds confidence, more so if we think that with 25 minutes to go, the score was still 14-3.”

Coverage on mainstream media helped generate interest in the match on a busy sporting weekend of Formula 1 and Sao Paulo's match with Corinthians, always one of the hottest tickets in town.

“Even with a downpour during the game, it was a huge party in which we managed to showcase our game to the public and sponsors,” added Danza. “From a commercial aspect, other than the ticket revenue, it was a great marquee event for future sponsors, and the ones we already have were delighted that they could generate activations with their products for the fans.”

Activity

The game was live on Twitter, with 180,000 followers online, which is more than double the average for a sports transmission on this social network.

There was a lot of pre-match activity in the build-up with the Maori All Blacks visiting Paraisópolis, one of the biggest favelas in the city where rugby has taken root. The growth of the game there is huge and Roberto Tenorio, who hails from Paraisópolis, was on the wing against the tourists.

A group of journalists were also introduced to rugby in a shared practice session with both teams, a first in the country.

“We got a very positive feedback from the Maori and we hope they can come back soon and have a rematch in a couple of years. It will continue to be a great weapon to grow our rugby community,” enthused Danza.

“Plans are underway for the Americas Rugby Championship 2019 and the qualifying process to Rugby World Cup 2023.”

Very intense

The on-field viewpoint was just as enthusiastic. Josh Reeves (pictured), one of two New Zealanders in the Brazilian set-up – the other is Os Tupis assistant coach and U20 head coach Jaco Mangin, enjoyed playing against his fellow countrymen. Married to a Brazilian and with a young boy born there, his roots are now entrenched in South America.

“We have been speaking for some time now to bring more of the Tupi culture to our team and our preparation,” said the fly-half, who has signed for Major League Rugby outfit, Utah Warriors, next season.

“What we saw with the Maori All Blacks was important as everyone I’ve talked to was impressed about their cultural heritage.”

Brazil faced the Haka linking arms. “It is something we’ve been doing for some time now, with arms going above or below depending on the number of caps. I understand linking arms is part of Tupi culture,” explained Reeves. “This way we share energy. We knew it was going to be an important moment.”

Once the game started, the nerves disappeared. Reeves kicked their only points in the second half from a 40-metre penalty after a huge scrum from Os Tupis' pack shoved the Maori All Blacks backwards at a rate of knots.

The future looks positive for Os Tupis, more so after testing themselves against such a strong team. Reeves would love to play more games of this calibre. “The people came and we did our bit. Hopefully, there are more opportunities such as this,” he said.

Having swapped jerseys with his direct opponent, Otere Black, Reeves has a treasured souvenir from the night.

“After the game, there were the hundreds of messages from mates in New Zealand. It was a great weekend.”

Photo: Joao Neto / FotoJump