Shadowing Practice: Michael Laws Exposes Religious Takeover Of The Black Ferns Rugby Team - Learn English Speaking with Video

Creating lesson...
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Listen, I wanted to bring something to your attention that concerns me greatly.
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um and much actually more ironically if it's possible.
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than the inaccuracy or accuracy otherwise of the various polling agencies in the last fortnight.
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It is to do with the Black Ferns rugby team.
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The women's rugby team.
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Currently involved, I think, in a four nation contest in Canada.
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I think that they're playing at the moment.
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They're very good win over Canada just recently.
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United States, Canada, Australia.
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That's right.
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Those four countries are playing in their own little contest while the six nation women have their own.
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30 ,000 people turned up to watch England thrash Murrayfield.
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um to watch a woman's rugby test uh not at the world cup extraordinary but there you go Anyhow, the Black Ferns are over there currently playing rugby in Canada.
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And last week, just before their game against Canada, They decided to adopt TIKUNGAMORI.
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to replace the captain's run.
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and it's reported by Te Ayo Māori News.
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I've seen it nowhere else.
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except on Te Ayo Māori News.
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And I don't understand why I haven't seen it anywhere else.
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Because this is...
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newspaper, headline, stuff.
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This is significant.
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Ruhaid de Mont, is it?
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Ruhaid de Mont?
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De Mont.
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Ruhaid de Mont.
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The captain.
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says that they are going through a cleansing practice which will bring calm and connection ahead of their Canada clash, which they didn't want.
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but it's to ensure most of all this particular cleansing practice they're going to.
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that they are grounded spiritually and physically before they play.
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I emphasize that word spiritually.
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This is all the result of coach Simon Kneebone, for some strange reason known as boner I hope that's some sort of play on Kneebone,
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who wanted to implement "a spiritual element for the team" while overseas.
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And this is direct quotes.
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So we just want to connect back to the whenua here.
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Wherever we are as a group, whenua meaning land shows some respect to those whose whenua this is,
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they're in Canada, so I wonder who they think the whenua belongs to in Canada.
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Canadians or, yes I know, and also connect
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with our own land and papa and ra in the sky and we've done that really well with the whakamoa.
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Now for those of you who don't know what a whakamawa is, it's a Māori process of removing tapu to make an environment or people safe.
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It's got a significant spiritual religious element.
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It involves karakia, prayer, the sprinkling of waters, the sharing of food.
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It's almost like a holy Maori ritual.
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In fact, it is a holy Maori ritual.
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What am I talking about?
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It's like getting the Catholic Church down for an exorcism, basically.
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Whokkamoa ensures that those involved in high -stakes emotional or sacred situations can return to their daily activities safely and
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wait for this, without spiritual restriction.
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It is a holy spiritual if you like, ritual.
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connected to a polytheistic nativist Māori religion nothing to do with Ratna or Ranganui churches or Christianity,
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something completely different.
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Pre -European.
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Now, it's not so much mumbo -jumbo as, if you like, nativist pantheistic voodoo.
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And can I just say to Richard Fanslow, who seems to listen to an awful lot and put in a massive amount of complaints to the BSA,
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voodoo is spelt V -O -O -D -O -O, just for your next complaint, just helping you there.
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See, that's the sort of people we are.
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Can I just ask this question?
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When did representing a New Zealand sports team.
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require you to sign up to a religion.
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I'll repeat.
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When did representing A New Zealand sports team,
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either here or overseas, require you actually to sign up to a specific religion.
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And in this case, a kind of nativist church
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with a variety of supernatural gods
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and it adherence to spiritual practices if you want to be a part of the New Zealand women's rugby team.
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Where's the safe place, can I ask? for Christians.
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for atheists for agnostics, for Hindus, for Muslims, for any other religion or denomination,
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if you're playing women's rugby in this country and you want to represent your country at that particular sport.
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It's compulsory to join this particular religious practice that the New Zealand women's rugby team are in, this Fokker Moor.
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And it is going to become part and parcel, according to their coach and their captain, of all of their rugby practices going forward over the next week's.
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Months and years if their coach and captain and particularly their coach gets his way after all it's his imposition.
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Um, This is knee bones gibberish, spiritual gibberish.
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And I quote unquote, We often listen to the senses, The wind and the sun, do you?
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You listen to the sun, do you?
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The birds and so forth.
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Oh my God, this man's coaching New Zealand Spum.
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And he's not only done that, but he's brought his spiritualism with him.
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But this is what he said.
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We often listen to the senses.
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the wind and the sun.
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the birds and so forth.
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And I'd have to say, this isn't a sports team, the Black Ferns, it's become a Cult.
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I'll say it again, this isn't a sports team, the Black Ferns rugby team, it's a religious cult.
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presided over by the high priest nebo Listen, check these people now.
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The New Zealand Rugby Football Union must intervene.
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before every aspirant New Zealand female rugby player is required to join the sporting version of the Moonies, can I say.

Why Practice Speaking with This Video?

This video featuring Michael Laws exposes a compelling discussion about the cultural and spiritual practices integrated into the Black Ferns rugby team's preparation. Engaging with this content allows learners to enhance their English speaking skills in a context rich with cultural significance. By practicing with real-world scenarios like sports commentary and cultural rituals, you can improve your ability to express ideas clearly and confidently. Moreover, discussing themes such as spirituality and team dynamics can broaden your vocabulary and understanding of various contexts, essential for IELTS speaking practice. It’s a fantastic opportunity to learn English with YouTube while diving into contemporary issues that resonate with audiences globally.

Grammar & Expressions in Context

Throughout the transcript, several key structures and expressions can help you improve your language proficiency:

  • Present Continuous Tense: "are currently playing" - This tense is used for actions currently in progress, which makes conversations lively and engaging.
  • Direct Quotations: "Simon Kneebone, for some strange reason..." - Utilizing quotations helps emphasize opinions and thoughts, which is crucial in spoken English, especially during discussions or debates.
  • Conditionals: "I wonder who they think the whenua belongs to..." - Conditional phrases like these enable you to express curiosity or hypothetical situations, enriching your conversational skills in English speaking practice.
  • Descriptive Language: "significant spiritual religious element" - Using descriptive language helps convey complex meanings effectively, especially in contexts that involve cultural nuances.

Common Pronunciation Traps

As you practice with this video, pay attention to certain words and phrases that may present challenges in pronunciation:

  • Tikungamori: This term may not be familiar to all learners, but practicing its pronunciation will enhance your understanding of Māori culture.
  • Whenua: The pronunciation of Māori words can be tricky; make sure to practice saying "whenua" with the right intonation to respect its cultural significance.
  • Karakia: This word refers to a prayer, and correctly pronouncing it can help you convey respect for different traditions when discussing spirituality in your conversations.
  • Ruhaid de Mont: Names can be particularly difficult; focusing on this will help you articulate names accurately, important in both shadowspeaks and social interactions.

By focusing on these aspects while shadowing Michael Laws' narration, you can significantly enhance your English speaking skills, making your conversations more fluent and culturally aware. Use this video as a resource in your journey to learn English with YouTube.

What is the Shadowing Technique?

Shadowing is a science-backed language learning technique originally developed for professional interpreter training and popularized by polyglot Dr. Alexander Arguelles. The method is simple but powerful: you listen to native English audio and immediately repeat it out loud — like a shadow following the speaker with just a 1–2 second delay. Unlike passive listening or grammar drills, shadowing forces your brain and mouth muscles to simultaneously process and reproduce real speech patterns. Research shows it significantly improves pronunciation accuracy, intonation, rhythm, connected speech, listening comprehension, and speaking fluency — making it one of the most effective methods for IELTS Speaking preparation and real-world English communication.