Pressure of expectation on an historic night at Eden Park? Well, yes, there may have been something in that after all. As it was, the Black Ferns had to dig extremely deep to subdue a lively Australia 41-17 in their World Cup opener tonight.
It had a bit of everything – a Portia Woodman hat-trick of tries, a double for Ruby Tui, yellow cards for Wallaroos skipper Shannon Parry for a high tackle, and another at the same time for wing Ivania Wong for an intentional knock-on, but above all it had mistakes from the Black Ferns.
After a stunning haka which whipped the large crowd into an even higher state of anticipation, the Black Ferns promptly dropped the ball – again and again.
They also, after they began their comeback late in the second half, showed vulnerability up front; a defensive scrum shunted backwards (they had it all over Australia in this facet in their big win over them in Christchurch in August), and a penalty conceded.
The Wallaroos, remember, had never before beaten the Black Ferns in 22 times of trying, but here on the very big stage, they almost pulled off a classic ambush.
They were good – three tries in the opening 28 minutes or so – before they lost their momentum in the second half, no doubt partly due to playing with 13 women for 10 minutes of it.
For Wayne Smith’s team, this was something of a reality check. They want to play attacking rugby at this tournament to counter the bigger and more experienced England and France but, well, you can’t do that without the ball.
Lock Joanah Ngan-Woo gave them a lifeline with a try after 28 minutes, with Woodman scoring her first shortly after. At 17-10, the Black Ferns at least had a foot-hold on the match with the promise of an improved second-half showing.
Because until the 30th minute the most impressive thing about their performance was their defensive efforts at the start in holding out the Wallaroos before fullback Bienne Terita’s first try.
The last time the Black Ferns played here they put nearly 100 points on Japan and coach Smith expressed his surprise at how well they handled the ball.
Maybe they used up their luck a match too early, because the near constant dropped balls were as regular as they were surprising.
Australia, meanwhile, were doing very little wrong.
Directed ably by Arabella McKenzie, they attacked the outside channels and, with Terita and Ivania Wong making the most of their opportunities it was an excellent strategy.
With two tries from fullback Terita and left wing Wong, the Wallaroos were up 17-0 before the half-hour mark – a stunning start for the visitors who must have thought this time their luck was in and that they were on the brink of doing what their men's team haven't been able to here since 1986.
And yet, with strike weapons such as Woodman, Tui, and Stacey Fluhler in their side, it couldn’t continue to be one-way traffic could it?
Lock Ngan-Woo took the direct route to the line after an excellent Fluhler carry, with Woodman scoring two minutes later; Tui involved in the movement twice and Woodman running through No.10 McKenzie on her way to the left corner.
They seemed set for more frustration after the break when an attempted lineout drive was stopped, and held up by Australia, but they eventually found their attacking groove via breaks by Renee Holmes and Ruahei Demant, with Woodman scoring in the left corner again with an unmarked teammate outside her.
It was the try which allowed the Black Ferns to equalise. They were fortunate to see McKenzie miss a penalty from in front, and then the match effectively turned with two Wallaroos seeing yellow for foul play; Parry’s high tackle on No.8 Liana Mikaele-Tu’u downgraded from a red due to a “lack of force”.
The Black Ferns cashed in. First, replacement prop Awhina Tangen-Wainohu was over, then Woodman had her hat-trick after a miracle pass from Fluhler, converted brilliantly from the sideline by Holmes.
Tui’s two tries to finish were, not surprisingly, well received from the crowd.
Big-match nerves on the opening day of the first women’s World Cup to be held in the Southern Hemisphere?
Yes, but they were overcome. After big wins by England and France, however, the Black Ferns will know the extent of their challenge.
New Zealand 41 (Portia Woodman 3, Ruby Tui 2, Joanah Ngan-Woo, Awhina Tangen-Wainohu tries; Kendra Cocksedge con, Renee Holmes 2 cons)
Australia 17 (Bienne Terita 2, Ivania Wong tries; Arabella McKenzie con)
Halftime: Australia 17-12
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