Scrappy win for Ferns on wet pitch
Against a combative French side, drizzly rain, a slippery ball and a muddy Stade Mayol pitch in Toulon, the Black Ferns’ controlled second spell saw them to a hard-earned 14-0 first test win.
It gave the Kiwis including HB’s Krysten Cottrell a 1-0 series lead and made it 9 consecutive test wins.
France, the world No 3-ranked team, which has never beaten the Black Ferns in five encounters, muscled up on defence and mostly dominated the set-pieces, but was ground down by a more accurate Black Ferns’ effort in the second stanza.
The home side took the early sting out of the Black Ferns’ haka, swinging onto attack and wresting the early initiative. While they rattled the Black Ferns, they were not able to post points, due to some suspect handling, and this proved costly in the final analysis.
Anaelle Deshaye, in particular, gave Aldora Itunu some serious heat at scrum time. Loose forwards, No 8 Romane Menager and captain Gaelle Hermet, were right in the Black Ferns’ faces with solid defence and breakdown physicality. Black Ferns coach Glenn Moore was proven right with his 6-2 bench split.
The Blacks Ferns tried too many moves behind the advantage line, playing into French hands, and matters were not helped when No 8 Aroha Savage was yellow carded just before the half.
While the rain started to fall steadily early in the second half, it was as if the Black Ferns had steeled themselves that this was going to be a knock ‘ em down, drag ‘ em out 40 minutes. The control from the pick and goes returned, and several times they were held up over the line, the TMO called upon more than once.
Lock Eloise Blackwell, who had previously been just short of the tryline, plunged over in the 52nd minute. Barely five minutes later, wing Renee Wickliffe, hitherto unemployed on the flanks, finished in fine style in the corner after some sweet handling and passing on the inside by Stacey Waaka and Selica Winiata.
By now the Black Ferns were upping the ante on defence, bringing vigour and aggression, to the chagrin of the Mayol crowd. The bench was central to this, players such as Aleisha-Pearl Nelson and Linda Itunu prominent. Marcelle Parkes, in just her fourth first-class outing, won her first test cap.
France almost had the last say, a crosskick nearly putting left wing Caroline Boujard over. But the home team will rue missed opportunities in the face of a determined Black Ferns that shrugged off a mediocre first spell to show how tight wet weather test rugby should be played.
They meet again at a sold-out Grenoble ground next weekend. ■ Black Ferns 14 (Eloise Blackwell, Renee Wickliffe tries; Kendra Cocksedge 2 con) France 0. HT: 0-0 — allblacks.com