Black Ferns

Hosts and reigning champions New Zealand beat Australia 41-17 in their opening match in front of a record crowd at Eden Park.

The match turned decisively in the 53rd minute, when Wong and Australia captain Shannon Parry were shown yellow cards within a few seconds of each other. I’m proud of how we closed off that first half and the way that we finished that game.” “It was definitely a game of two halves,” said New Zealand captain Ruahei Demant.

After giving away a 17-point lead early in the first half of their opening Rugby World Cup match against Australia, the Black Ferns have hit back to win ...

The match turned decisively in the 53rd minute, when Wong and Australia captain Shannon Parry were shown yellow cards within a few seconds of each other. "Australia really put us under the pump there right from the start. Today's crowd for the triple-header was a record for a women's World Cup match and for a standalone women's sporting fixture in New Zealand.

Wayne Smith appears to have plenty of work ahead of him after a slow start.

There were things to like in the performance for the Black Ferns. A backline who have never played together in the configuration they were sent out in looked exactly that, as players looked at times like they weren't on the same page. It wasn't long before they were in again out wide through Portia Woodman, and trailing by just five points at the break. Coming into 2022, they had never led the Black Ferns at halftime in a test. Now, in four tests this year, they have led two at the break. For the Black Ferns, head coach Wayne Smith appears to have plenty of work ahead of him.

The Black Ferns withstood an Australian avalanche to open the World Cup with a pulsating 41-17 win at Eden Park in front of a world record crowd for a ...

Remarkably the Black Ferns only trailed at halftime for the second time in a World Cup match. Only 45,412 attended the whole World Cup in Ireland in 2017. The occasion was the 2014 World Cup final between England and Canada in France. The Black Ferns were level in the 47th minute when Woodman scored her second. England scored 16 tries and meet France next Saturday night in a key Pool C fixture in Whangārei. Australia deserves a lot of acclaim for their heart and start.

On a historic night for the sport with a world record women's rugby crowd, Brienne Terita threatened a boilover with two early tries of immense quality. The ...

[Awhina Tangen-Wainohu](https://www.rugbypass.com/players/awhina-tangen-wainohu/) and Woodman going over with the pair in the bin, leaving Tui to finish the rout with two superb running tries. [Joanah Ngan-Woo](https://www.rugbypass.com/players/joanah-ngan-woo/) finished a 13-phase attack to start their scoring, and Woodman scored her first before the break to ease the scoreboard pressure. [France](https://www.rugbypass.com/teams/france/) were the other opening-day winners at Eden Park, which also set a record for New Zealand’s biggest ever attendance for a women’s sporting event. [Australia](https://www.rugbypass.com/teams/australia/) in dreamland. [Ruahei Demant](https://www.rugbypass.com/players/ruahei-demant/), surging from behind the half-way line to score a runaway try. [Ruby Tui](https://www.rugbypass.com/players/ruby-tui/) – a contender for best afield – held up [Liz Patu](https://www.rugbypass.com/players/liz-patu/) early, before the Australian breakthrough on 13 minutes. [Shannon Parry](https://www.rugbypass.com/players/shannon-parry/) ruined any chance of Australian success, allowing [Portia Woodman](https://www.rugbypass.com/players/portia-woodman/) to complete a hat-trick to carry New Zealand to a first-up win. [Arabella McKenzie](https://www.rugbypass.com/players/arabella-mckenzie/) under the sticks caught New Zealand napping, allowing Terita to surge over in the corner. Yellow cards to Wong for a deliberate knock down and foul play from captain Shannon Parry left the Wallaroos with just 13, and at the mercy of the Black Ferns. [New Zealand](https://www.rugbypass.com/teams/new-zealand/) an almighty scare on the opening night of the Rugby World Cup, leading 17-0 before succumbing to the Black Ferns 41-17. Terita scored a second on 28 minutes, a spread from the left to right that ended in the 19-year-old diving over, to put [1 Crusaders rival on how much chat Dane Coles dishes out](https://www.rugbypass.com/news/quite-a-bit-crusaders-rival-on-how-much-chat-dane-coles-dishes-out/) [2 Owen Farrell is 'the best rugby league player'](https://www.rugbypass.com/news/owen-farrell-is-the-best-rugby-league-player-of-the-last-10-years/) [3 Will Skelton has his say on Kerr-Barlow's Wallabies ambition](https://www.rugbypass.com/news/will-skelton-has-his-say-on-kerr-barlow-wallabies-ambition/) [4 Stormers prop Sandi cops ban for red card hit on Jamie Ritchie](https://www.rugbypass.com/news/stormers-prop-sandi-cops-ban-for-red-card-hit-on-jamie-ritchie/) [5 Ex-Ireland hooker reveals the club that Rory Sutherland is joining](https://www.rugbypass.com/news/ex-ireland-hooker-reveals-the-club-that-rory-sutherland-is-joining-worcester/) [More News](https://www.rugbypass.com/)

Hosts New Zealand had to battle back from 17-0 down to record an opening 41-17 win against Australia at Eden Park.

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Black Ferns 41Australia 17 In their opening match of the World Cup, the Black Ferns have shown there is sometimes more than meets the eye than just the fin.

There were things to like in the performance for the Black Ferns. Coming into 2022, they had never led the Black Ferns at halftime in a test. For the Black Ferns, head coach Wayne Smith appears to have plenty of work ahead of him.

Analysis - The Black Ferns 41-17 win over the Wallaroos last night capped off a new more family-friendly, fan-driven kind of experience for punters at Eden ...

While the World Cup opener should rightfully be held up as a celebration of women's rugby right now, years from now it will be remembered as an important day for the national game of New Zealand in general. The wave ridden by new fans of a fixture that, for a while there, the Black Ferns had no right to win, is a wonderful and unique experience of its own. It was up to the day itself to carry them further. It's the ones who are there for the first time ever, most usually children but occasionally adults who are giving something new a go. The people in charge knew that the most important ones at a sporting event aren't the players. [Blacks Ferns 41-17 win](https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/sport/476317/rugby-world-cup-black-ferns-overcome-horror-start-to-beat-australia-41-17) over the Wallaroos on the field was good, but the one off it was better.

The defending World Cup champions subdue Australia with an attacking masterclass in the second half after a moving haka to kick off historic tournament.

The karanga, or welcome, to start the haka, performed by Woodman, Demant and Arihiana Marino-Tauhinu, was something the trio came up with themselves. “We maybe let the occasion get to us - forgetting to just play simple; catch the ball and run hard,” Woodman said. It wasn’t anything new that we needed to do.” This is how skipper Ruahei Demant felt when standing in the tunnel preparing to run on for the first time: “It was electric. Demant said: “Aussie came out firing and they wanted it more. “We took it to them,” Parry added.