Mako Vunipola says England did their v-shaped response to the haka knowing it would “rile” the All Blacks up prior to their semi-final showdown.
Vunipola and teammate Manu Tuilagi said coach Eddie Jones had come up with the idea.
“We talked about it as a team but everything has to get past the boss,” Vunipola said.
“He gave us the idea, we wanted to be respectful, but we wanted to also make sure that they understood that we would be ready for the fight.”
“We knew it would rile them up, it probably felt like we disrespected them, we meant no offence by it, we just wanted to let them know that we were ready for the challenge ahead.”
Tuilagi said the ploy was about accepting the challenge laid down by the All Blacks and it certainly led into a fast start with the star midfielder scoring for England inside two minutes.
England’s v-shaped formation in response to the haka was inspired by coach Eddie Jones.
“It was just to show we're ready to accept the challenge. ready to take the All Blacks head-on, playing the ABs you can't wait, they're the best team in the world,” he said.
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“You got to attack right from the start, we're fortunate it came right for us.”
“For me, it’s the fifth time I've played the All Blacks, (it’s) always an honour, I respect the haka, it gets you pumped up.”
All Blacks reserve lock Patrick Tuipulotu admitted that Tuilagi’s early try left the New Zealanders rattled.
England captain Owen Farrell said the response was about not letting the All Blacks approach them.
"We wanted to not just stand there and not let them come at us," Farrell said.
"We wanted to keep a respectful distance. And be respectful, but we didn't want to just stand in a flat line and let them come at us."
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