The Black Ferns have notched another big bonus point World Cup victory to put them in a good position to finish top seeds and now assistant coach Whitney Hansen has suggested tournament favourites England appear “beatable”.
Forwards coach Hansen, speaking after her side’s 10-try 56-12 victory over Wales at Waitakere Stadium, was commenting on England’s 13-7 victory over France in Whangārei on Saturday.
“The best article I read about it was you can either look at that and decide France’s defence was pretty special and I think we did that, and the other side is England are beatable and I think teams will be looking at that and thinking that now too,” Hansen said.
She was right in that France’s superb defensive effort highlighted some vulnerabilities in England’s attack.
The Red Roses could manage only a first-half try despite their huge advantages in possession and territory – and appeared relieved to hear the final whistle against their Six Nations opponents.
And yet, Hansen’s reflections may provoke a response from England, because her Black Ferns pack struggled at times against Wales.
They gave up a scrum tighthead plus four scrum penalties and were dominated by the Welsh driving maul, which reaped two tries. These are exactly the sort of areas that England excel at.
Still, the Black Ferns, who face Scotland in Whangārei on Saturday – their final pool game – are on track to finish as top seeds and are therefore in line to play the eighth-ranked team in their quarter-final should they score a bonus point victory over the Scots. Depending on results, the Black Ferns could meet England in a semifinal or the final.
Canada, with two bonus point wins (and a points differential of +46 compared with New Zealand’s +68), are the next best placed team, with England, who have won 27 games in a row, third after their recent narrow victory.
The hints of the growing Black Ferns’ confidence – late last year they lost comprehensively away to England twice – and increasing rivalry will also help fan the flames of a tournament that grew hotter yesterday with Fiji beating South Africa 21-17 with a try in the last minute.
This is Fiji’s first World Cup and their win came a week after they were humbled by England at Eden Park.
Black Ferns flanker Kendra Reynolds said: “We’re really happy for our Fijian sisters to put a good performance on and equally South Africa, it was exciting footy.”
As for the Black Ferns, there were no real surprises regarding their attack against Wales.
It again sparkled, with wing Portia Woodman scoring two tries to bring her total for the tournament to five, and 18-year-old centre Sylvia Brunt scoring a double, her second a brilliant team effort. Ruby Tui’s try, her team’s 10th of the match, was another beauty.
But they clearly still have work to do on their set piece and discipline, a narrative likely to continue for as long as they're alive in this tournament.
Replacement flanker Sarah Hirini and No.8 Charmaine McMenamin were yellow carded late in the second half and the Black Ferns were lucky not to see someone go to the sinbin late in the first half after receiving a warning from the referee.
Overall, the penalty count was 17-8 against the Black Ferns.
“We were able to play the attack that we’re excited about and wanting to bring to this tournament,” Hansen said. “There were a few dropped balls and a few errors but there are always things to work on and tidy up.
“We’re always hunting for a performance and I think we got a step closer to that but there is a way to go. Our defence was better, our attack was pretty special at times - we just have to work on those other areas.”
Reynolds said the mood in the camp afterwards was upbeat as they considered a trip north to play Scotland. “Although we can dwell on the mistakes the reality is we put a big win on so let’s be really happy about that,” she said.
And for Hansen, Scotland, who have narrowly lost to Wales and Australia at this World Cup, may be reasonably well suited for a Black Ferns team determined to stay true to their attacking roots.
“What we’ve seen from them is they’re strong defensively… so we’re going to have to work really hard to contest that gain line,” she said of Scotland. “They did kick a lot [against Australia] which is exciting for us because we like to run a lot so hopefully that works out for us.”
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