Talking points as Black Ferns run rampant against outgunned France

The Black Ferns have opened their three-Test series against France with a mammoth 81-12 win in Hamilton.

The hosts had piled on 60 points before the visitors could fire their first shot, with France’s second try coming in the dying minutes.

New Zealand’s 23 linebreaks dwarfed France’s tally of two, and while Ayesha Leti-I’iga was responsible for four of them, there were 11 other Kiwis who broke the French line in a superb team performance. 20-year-old rookie Shyrah Tuliau-Tua’a bagged four second-half tries while Amy Du Plessis, Maia Joseph and Ayesha Leti-I’iga all scored doubles.

Black Ferns find clinical edge
When these teams met in Lyon last month, France bettered New Zealand’s 22m conversion rate, and it’s not unusual for Whitney Hansen’s side to lose that stat. The Black Ferns have been a quantity-over-quality team so far in 2026, scoring 2.9 points per 22m entry. That is certainly respectable, but only 0.5 points per entry higher than what their opponents have managed against them, despite some big wins. Their superpower has been the volume of 22m entries.

In Hamilton, the Black Ferns made 20 entries into France’s 22m zone, and converted at a rate of four points per entry. At first glance, both figures look impressive, but that volume of 22m entries isn’t particularly remarkable for the Black Ferns, who average 15.5.

When quantity meets quality, you get an 81-12 shellacking.

Following the Test, Black Ferns head coach Whitney Hansen said: “We talked a lot about icing it this week. About being clinical and about finishing those moments.”

It’s fair to say the message got through, and perhaps the most impressive part of the performance was how consistent New Zealand were throughout the 80 minutes. There was no complacency at half-time; there was no turning off once they’d built a 40, 50, 60 or even a 70-point lead. They scored 43 points in the first half and 38 in the second. It took 65 seconds to score the first try of the first half, and 75 seconds to score the first try of the second half.

This Kiwi team was dialled in from the outset, and stayed locked in for an 80-minute performance.

Rugby is a simple game
The Black Ferns’ ambition under the last coaching regime held them back. You do not need to reinvent the wheel; you do not need three wrap-around moves per phase with players running on all sorts of angles hoping to create chaos and end up running through a gaping hole in the defence.

You need to carry and clean. You need to catch and pass. You need to win collisions. That is what Whitney Hansen has restored in this Black Ferns team.

Hansen’s pragmatism has unlocked her team’s attack, and she’s done it with the same attack coach, just with a new, well-communicated vision.

There were some more ambitious moments in Hamilton when the attacking shape became more complex and, as it so often did last year, the ball hit the deck as a result. It was a reminder of where this team has come from in the space of six months since Hansen got her hands on the squad, and also a reminder of why their evolution has been so effective.

The team will likely build their structures over this World Cup cycle, but their ambition must remain measured if they want a sustainable game plan for when the lights are brightest.

France in for a long series
Eek. Shipping 81 points will hurt this side, but the question is: where do they go from here?

In this year’s Six Nations, France led the comp in dominant tackles, and were middle of the pack in turnovers won. In Hamilton, they were completely lost when trying to slow the Black Ferns’ roll, unable to compete for possession at the breakdown despite making nearly as many dominant tackles as New Zealand.

They obviously can’t afford to tackle at 72 per cent again, and they can’t afford to let their big defensive moments go to waste. Failing to disrupt New Zealand’s possession meant the Kiwis made 103 more ball carries than France.

On the other side of next week’s Whangarei Test is a Christchurch series finale that is expected to draw a huge crowd, and the Black Ferns will no doubt be eager to impress under the new roof. The bar has been set, and this series will certainly test the character of the France squad.