After leaving his long-term position at Wycombe Wanderers, where he had almost achieved god-like status, Gareth Ainsworth was always going to be under added scrutiny in his next role.
But after joining QPR, the club he had previously represented with merit as a player, in February, he had no idea just how intense the scrutiny would be. The Englishman was widely mocked by football fans after a video showing him bringing a Maori performer into the QPR dressing room went viral on Twitter.
Many of his players looked a little confused and uncomfortable with the performer's presence. However, Ainsworth tells FourFourTwo the haka is a powerful tool in sports, and something he thought worth sharing.
"People have got their own views on that type of thing, but I met Bruce Simpson – the Maori man – previously and he told me the story of the dance and what it means to people, and it’s such a powerful message," Ainsworth tells FFT. "People see the All Blacks doing it, but they don’t really know what it’s about. They think it’s an aggressive dance – it’s not.
"It’s about respect. Bruce taught me all about it and I was totally blown away. The All Blacks are from a tiny nation of around four million people, yet they’re one of the most successful teams in the world."
While some of his players – and a lot of football fans across the country – mocked the idea, Ainsworth believes the reaction to the dance actually helped him assess who he could trust to take on new ideas.
"The reason I brought Bruce in at QPR wasn’t actually to see who would embrace it, but who wouldn’t embrace it," he says. "The players who sort of took the piss out of it or were laughing at the back told me much more about themselves than the ones who gave it everything. It proved a very valuable tool for me."
Ainsworth enjoyed a tough start to life as QPR gaffer, but eventually helped lead the club away from the Championship relegation zone to safety. Maybe, just maybe, more clubs might be tempted to give Bruce the Maori man a call next season.
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