Five talking points from the opening day of the women's Rugby World Cup.
Home from the forest
As Australian wing Bienne Terita plunged over for her second try at Eden Park to see her team leading the Black Ferns by 17-0 after 30 minutes it took a few seconds forme to realise I was holding my head in hands.
After weeks of the sheer enjoyment the Ferns have provided with their on-field daring and their off-the-field vitality in the Cup build-up, seeing them struggle on the big stage brought unbidden childhood memories of a Disney movie where Bambi's mother was lost in a forest fire.
Thankfully the humour and vivacity we've seen in the Ferns proved to be matched by resilience. The spotlight and emotion may have spooked them at the start, but this is a team of women strengthened by life's experiences. An example? When hooker Luka Connor has a bit of spare time she heads to the family farm near Opotiki and goes pig hunting.
At Eden Park the forwards got ruthless, and backs like Stacey Fluhler, Portia Woodman, and Ruby Tui started flying. The team found their groove and the result was one of the great rugby comebacks. Fifty minutes produced 41 unanswered points, and the strong impression there won't now be any second or third night nerves.
All in the family
It felt like take-a-kid-to-footy day at Eden Park. A massive man in a Fijian jersey soothed a fractious toddler by walking up and down an aisle in the North Stand. In the four rows in front of where I sat with my daughter and two grandchildren I counted the same number of children as adults.
Between more tries over the three games than you could count on the fingers of four hands, music by a genuine pop star, Rita Ora, and the Patea Maori Club's terrific version of Poi E, only a bouncy castle on the concourse could have made the event more family friendly.
Stacey Fluhler of New Zealand takes selfies with fans after the Women's Rugby World Cup match between New Zealand and Australia at Eden Park. Photosport
The crowning touch was what seemed to be an inexhaustible supply of free poi. Seeing a sea of poi flickering over the crowd in the stands was not only a new, heart-warming chapter in New Zealand sport, but also a potent hint for the men's game to work harder at ways to engage a crowd that goes beyond the traditional, austere, often basically non-existent, preliminaries before big games.
Any doubts over the main stumbling block for the Black Ferns were surely swept away by England, in their clinical, powerful disposal of a daring but raw Fijian team, 84-19.
We expected potent rolling mauls from England, but their finishing out wide, with four tries for wing Claudia MacDonald, was a reminder they've got pace too. And another tick for captain Sarah Hunter's gracious post-match comments, where she managed to praise Fiji without a hint of condescension.
With the Ferns and the Roses playing in different pools, the vagaries of knock-out rounds mean they may never oppose each other at the Cup. But if, at whatever stage it is, they do face off, you won't regret making time in your life to watch.
Claudia MacDonald of England celebrates her try against Fiji. Photosport
Geographical issues
If there's one note of dissension in the buzz around the Cup, it's that only two cities, Auckland and Whangarei, will be hosting games.
Having spent two of the most enjoyable rugby afternoons of my life at women's NPC finals in 2020 and this year at Rugby Park in Christchurch, I do feel for supporters in Christchurch.
But at the time plans were being made for the current Cup, who could have guessed the surge in interest that would bring a world record crowd for women's rugby of 34,235 to Eden Park for the opening day?
When Australia played the Ferns in Christchurch in August at Orangetheory Stadium, the crowd was loud and engaged, but it was also small enough to easily fit in just one of the stands.
Knowing now what we didn't know then, a big day in the South Island or Wellington would work, but three years ago the risk of echoing stadiums would have loomed as a possibility to any realistic person.
Chatting with a former All Black at Eden Park before the Ferns game he had an interesting angle on why he believes the New Zealand women show more daring when they play than our male players. "Until now the women haven't been making a living from the game. If they try something different and it doesn't work, they'll still have a job to go to on Monday."
