It wasn’t exactly blinding them Pacific Four Series success in the title. Or their wins against the Wallaroos or the Springbok Women. But Whitney Hansen remains unbeaten as head coach of the Black Ferns.
This time New Zealand done in a different way. France represented a physical and more direct threat to the Black Ferns. But the six-time world champions registered a 28-14 victory at the Mamut de Gerland Stadium in the first game of their WXV Global Series game of the fall.
At half-time, efforts from Justine McGregor and Mia Anderson – both converted by Braxton Sorensen-McGee – topped Pauline Bourdon Sansus’ sensational try.
Just moments into the second half, Mererangi Paul tried to extend her team’s lead to 14 points. There was almost a challenge when Léa Murie went down, only for the TMO to rule it out for an early forward pass.
In the end, France did break through Lina Queyroi in the 67th minute, only for the hosts’ hopes of later form to be snuffed out when Liana Mikaele-Tu’u broke the whitewash four minutes later to secure victory.
Here’s how the Black Ferns rated in Lyon…
15 Braxton Sorensen-McGee – 7.5
At this point, Braxton Sorensen-McGee’s performances are no surprise. The 19-year-old was clear of the shot and cut through opposing defenders for fun. Defensively, Sorensen-McGee was also great and did a good job. She gave away a few penalties, but certainly didn’t do anything terribly detrimental to her team.
14 Fighting Paul – 6.5
About a week after Soweto, Mererangi Paul really enjoyed an afternoon in Lyon. The winger scored the first try of the second half. France got some joy on the wing of the 27-year-old, although that shouldn’t detract from a solid result.
13 Amy du Plessis – 7
It was a busy afternoon for Amy du Plessis, who performed her role impressively more than anything. The center is improving on both sides of the ball and her role as a starter won’t be in question anytime soon. In full time, she had 13 tackles and gained over 40 yards.
12 Sylvia Brunt – 7.5
Sylvia Brunt’s archetypal performance. An expert at interweaving attacks, the 24-year-old completed 14 passes, beat four defenders and even completed over 10 tackles. A real mega thing.
11 Justine McGregor – 6
Although there was a goal try on Saturday, it was a quiet performance from Justine McGregor. Her attempt was well finished in the 14th minute, but otherwise touches of the ball were few and far between.
10 Hannah King – 6.5
Another good performance by King in controlling the game. With Ruahei Demanto missing from the Black Ferns squad for their European tour, there should be no concerns about the 22-year-old’s ability to pull the strings.
9 Maia Joseph – 7
Much like in South Africa, Joseph set the pace for the Black Ferns. Her ability to recognize exactly what her team needs at that moment is extremely impressive. Besides, that extra bit of experience with the first five getting into the starting jersey for the first time is really important.
1 Chryss Viliko – 6.5
In the scrum, Viliko improved. She made life miserable for Asia Khalfaoui as the Black Ferns wore their opponents down.
2 Georgia Ponsonby – 6.5
Pretty good day for the captain. Ponsonby and her teammates weren’t perfect in the line, but they still had a better score than their opponent. In total, the Trailfinders The female whore made 26 meters and seven moves.
3 Veisinia Mahutariki-Fakalelu – 7
A lot of why you beat France, shockingly, has to do with how you did on the set piece. In the fight, Veisinia Mahutariki-Fakalelu and Viliko managed to disrupt France and help their team make that superiority count.
4 Maiakawanakaulani Roos – 6.5
Maiakawanakaulani Roos’ more underrated performance this week. Last time, the lock seemed to be at the heart of it all. This time, she mostly stuck to her task of starting the plant and keeping the Black Ferns on the front foot. Which she did for 56 minutes before being replaced.
5 Laura Bayfield – 7.5
Corresponding performance in the second row. Laura Bayfield made 15 tackles for Lyon and was a really useful tool for her team on the line. Sometimes it’s hard to muster too much enthusiasm for engine room grunt work, but Bayfield makes it easy.
6 Mia Anderson – 7
Mia Anderson really shined offensively in this game. On the pitch for 72 minutes, she scored her first try for the Black Ferns and even made it 80 meters to beat six defenders with the ball. One of those players will have people really excited when the British & Irish Lions Women tour takes place next year.
7 Elinor-Plum King – 5.5
Perhaps the quietest afternoon Elinor-Plum King has had in Test rugby since her debut. Openside only made eight attempts against *Les Bleues*, but still went through a lot of unprecedented work.
8 Liana Mikaele-Tutu – 8.5
Quite possibly the Black Ferns man of the match. Liana Mikaele-Tu’u proved to be worth her weight in gold all over the court. Her effort was a work of art and the way the 24-year-old can step into the open field is simply stunning. A useful tool on the line as well, we see the player getting better and better with every minute of the test match.
Substitutions – 6
Almost every substitution Hansen made helped the Black Ferns see this game out. No injection of pace was needed, nor was there any real need to consolidate the line or scrum.