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Player comparisons: Black Ferns make World Cup statement against Ireland
By Finn Morton at Brighton & Hove Albion Stadium, Brighton & Hove
New Zealand will take the number-one seed out of Pool C after defeating Ireland 40-0 at Brighton & Hove Albion Stadium on Sunday. Inside centre Sylvia Brunt received Player of the Match honours, with the Black Ferns making a statement ahead of the quarter-finals.
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After a slow start of sorts, the Black Ferns took the lead on the scoreboard and never looked back. Braxton Sorensen-McGee sent Stacey Waaka over for the opener, before Chryss Viliko added another five points to New Zealand’s lead soon after.
Sorensen-McGee crossed for one more Black Ferns try before the half-time break, as they took a commanding 19-0 lead into the sheds. The teenager completed a hat-trick during the second term, with Maia Joseph scoring the only other try.
Front row – Advantage New Zealand
New Zealand were a bit slow out of the blocks yet again this World Cup, with Ireland looking far more dangerous during the first 10 minutes. If we focus on the front row, the starting trio for the Black Ferns were involved in some moments to forget, before bouncing back in a big way.
Chryss Viliko was penalised for not rolling away inside the first two minutes, but the tighthead ended up scoring New Zealand’s second try of the Test later on. Viliko also knocked the ball on once, but ended up making the equal-most tackles out of any player by half-time.
Georgia Ponsonby won the positional battle with Ireland’s 39-Test hooker Neve Jones, with the New Zealander hitting the mark with 85 per cent of first-half throws. The only lineout that didn’t go to plan for the Black Ferns happened early on, with Alana Bremner dropping the ball cold.
Ponsonby was otherwise solid around the park, and the same can be said for New Zealand’s Tanya Kalounivale, who was replaced around the 30-minute mark. Kalounivale carried the ball hard at Ireland’s defensive line, before Amy Rule came on as a replacement before the break.
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Kalounivale and Viliko both knocked the ball on once, and the Black Ferns front row also gave away a scrum free kick in the 14th minute. But by the end of the first half, the New Zealanders had stepped up at scrum time, with Rule giving the women in black a noticeable lift.
Ireland’s front row of Niamh O’Dowd, Jones and Linda Djougang had their moments, especially early on with some tough carries. Jones was a particular standout as a workhorse in defence, but there’s no doubt New Zealand won this positional battle overall.
Second row – Advantage New Zealand
Alana Bremner made an early mistake at the set-piece but it wasn’t a sign of things to come for the Black Ferns. Bremner dropped a lineout cold about five metres out from New Zealand’s try line, but fortunately for them, Ireland weren’t able to score off the phases that followed.
After winning a pilfer penalty in the 11th minute, and then leaving the field to attend the blood bin soon after, Bremner returned as a general at the set-piece for the Black Ferns, rising highest time and time again to claim multiple throws.
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Bremner combined with second row partner Maia Roos really well. Roos had made the equal-most tackles out of any player by half-time, and the lock maintained that defensive excellence into the second half, finishing with just shy of 20 tackles.
In comparison, the Irish duo of Ruth Campbell and co-captain Sam Monaghan weren’t able to have the same impact. Campbell finished in single digits for tackles completed, although Monaghan finished top five for that particular stat out of the Irish players.
Back row – Advantage New Zealand
Grace Moore was one of Ireland’s best against New Zealand, with the blindside flanker standing out with a few really impressive carries. Moore linked up with some teammates for a decent break upfield early in the second term, and that’s not the only moment to speak of.
Moore had a line break earlier in the match as well, actually clocking in with the fourth-most carries out of any Irish player and sixth-most running metres. The backrower also secured a pilfer penalty in the 33rd minute, making this an afternoon to remember.
Ireland co-captain Edel McMahon also stood out as one of the team’s best on both sides of the ball, and No. 8 Brittany Hogan had some solid involvements. But with Aoife Wafer unavailable, with 2025 Six Nations Player of the Championship out with injury, the Irish lost this battle.
It was quite close actually, but New Zealand’s trio of Layla Sae, Jorja Miller and Lana Mikaele-Tu’u were all quite impressive. Miller was quieter in this match compared to her first two performances at the World Cup, but the SVNS Series star still had some moments.
Miller had a half-break during the first term, and reeled in a cross-field kick in the 49th minute which presented a chance to score, but the openside flanker was dragged to ground. This was an important Test for Miller before the quarters, and the 21-year-old didn’t look out of place.
That said, Miller did concede two turnovers, which was up there with the most out of anyone. Alana Bremner and Ireland’s Dannah O’Brien had lost two turnovers as well by the 50th minute, with those three equal-first for that particular statistic.
Mikaele-Tu’u and Sae carried well when called upon, and the impact of 2022 Rugby World Cup-winning co-captain Kennedy Tukuafu was another talking point. New Zealand’s back row was better oval, but Ireland’s Moore was best loose forward on the park.
Half-backs – Advantage New Zealand
Risi Pouri-Lane was given a golden opportunity to start in a massive match for the Black Ferns at this World Cup, and the HSBC SVNS Series star didn’t disappoint. This was, perhaps, Pouri-Lane’s best performance to date at the showpiece event.
Pouri-Lane looked calm and composed, and the same could be said for halves partner Ruahei Demant. But if we focus on Pouri-Lane for a moment, the halfback was able to showcase some playmaking X-factor without overplaying her hand.
With the forward pack laying down a marker up front, the backline had plenty of front-foot ball to play with. Pouri-Lane was the link between the forwards and backs, providing quick ball to allow for the likes of Demant and Braxton Sorensen-McGee to shine.
Demant just looked comfortable out there. Even in defence, the first five-eighth never looked rushed or panicked when called upon to make tackles, or to clean up some kicks downfield from Irish opposite Dannah O’Brien.
O’Brien wasn’t on song against the New Zealanders, with a series of ineffective kicks failing to trouble the Black Ferns. Just before the half-time break, O’Brien sent a kick-off restart into touch on the full too – it just wasn’t Ireland’s day.
Aoibheann Reilly looked lively at scrum-half but again, with New Zealand’s forwards winning their own positional battles, the halfback wasn’t able to star. If you’re a Black Ferns supporter, great signs overall from two key game-drivers.
Centres – Advantage New Zealand
When Sylvia Brunt was named Player of the Match, there seemed to be a sense of agreement from the Brighton crowd. Brunt had been destructive from quite literally the get-go, and the inside centre didn’t stop until leaving the field.
Brunt set the tone early with a decent shot on opposite Eve Higgins about five metres out from New Zealand’s try line, but the centre was especially impressive in attack as the match went on – finishing with 38 running metres from 12 carries.
With the forwards winning their individual battles, and the halves duo of Risi Pouri-Lane and Ruahei Demant providing quality ball, Brunt was able to flourish. The same can definitely be said about Stacey Waaka, with the ‘Smiling Assassin’ also performing well.
Braxton Sorensen-McGee sent Waaka over for the opener. Not long after, Waaka could be seen speaking with Portia Woodman-Wickliffe about tactics, with the former Black Ferns Sevens teammates appearing calm yet confident opposite one of the world’s best teams.
As for Ireland, Higgins was one of the team’s best. It seemed like something special could happen at any moment when Higgins touched the ball, having carried bravely and with purpose every single time.
Higgins had the second-most number of carries out of any player, and one more than Sylvia Brunt. Ireland’s centre pairing of Higgins and Aoife Dalton was solid overall, with the outside centre standing out with a few impressive carries early on.
Back three – Advantage New Zealand
An 18-year-old was clearly up there with the best of the best during the Rugby World Cup pool stage – if not the Player of the Tournament so far. Braxton Sorensen-McGee was brilliant against both Spain and Japan, and the rising star continued to shine bright against Ireland.
Black Ferns Director of Performance Allan Bunting fielded some questions about the call to shift Sorensen-McGee from fullback to the wing. Sorensen-McGee scored a hat-trick and was named Player of the Match at fullback last time out, but the coach remained confident.
Bunting described Sorensen-McGe’s performance against Japan in Exeter as “exceptional” and the teenager repeated those heroics against Ireland. On the wing, Sorensen-McGee had more than 45 metres by the 30-minute mark, which was almost double anyone else.
The No.14 had more than 80 carry metres an hour into the Test and scored two tries as well. After sending Stacey Waaka over for the opener with a simple draw and pass early on, Sorensen-McGee completed a double with an effort in either half.
Portia Woodman-Wickliffe was unusually quiet on the left edge, with the ‘GOAT’ only managing one or two memorable carries. Renee Holmes was solid at fullback, with the goal-kicking ace slotting some difficult shots at goal, and also setting up Sorensen-McGee’s second.
As for Ireland, Stacey Flood had more than 40 carry metres in 30 minutes before unfortunately leaving the contest with what appeared to be a leg injury. Nancy McGillivray injected some flair into the backline as a more-than-useful replacement.
Beibhinn Parsons struggled to get into the contest at times, and the same could be said for left winger Ame-Leigh Costigan. Costigan almost scored a try during the second half, but a kick downfield rolled about one metre too far and into touch.
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