Starting slow and finishing fast has been the story of the Black Ferns' opening two games of their World Cup campaign.
In their opener against Australia, they struggled to get into the contest in the opening 20 minutes, before running their opposition off the park. In their 56-12 win over Wales in Waitākere on Sunday, it was a similar story.
For the final 60 minutes, their attack was fluid; they were able to find lots of space on the edges, exploit it with plenty of success, and run the score up to book their spot in the quarter-finals.
New Zealand captain Ruahei Demant in action against Wales. Photo / photosport.nz
However, the opening 20 minutes was again an area of concern. Guilty of perhaps trying to do too much before earning the right to, handling errors saw their attack fizzle out in the opening 15 minutes, while issues with the scrum and discipline allowed Wales to get out of their own half and test the Black Ferns defence.
They defended the pressure well and saw off every attack the Welsh side threw at them, and as was the case last weekend, once the Black Ferns got on the scoreboard, everything seemed to click into gear.
It was a smart play from halfback Ariana Bayler to exploit a defender who had shot out of the line early and draw an offside penalty that saw the Black Ferns get going. Kicking to the corner and executing a good lineout, they peppered away at the Welsh line. While prop Tanya Kalounivale was ultimately held up over the line, the Black Ferns continued to hold the ball and work away, seeing lock Chelsea Bremner crash over from close range in the 18th minute.
Two minutes later, the lead was doubled; Portia Woodman getting the ball out wide and, ignoring an unmarked teammate on her outside, opting to take on two defenders to get to the line.
Woodman was in the thick of the action moments later, this time in the middle of the park and breaking away from the defence. She was soon brought down in the Welsh 22, but quick ruck ball saw it spread to Alana Bremner, who surged down the wing. While the flanker didn't have the speed to beat two cover defenders, she cut back inside and took the contact before flicking a beautiful offload to Sylvia Brunt for the try, soon followed by a second to Woodman.
Sylvia Brunt of New Zealand scores a try against Wales. Photo / photosport.nz
Despite the slow start, in the space of 12 minutes they found themselves with a 15-point lead.
While their attack was firing, their discipline was still giving Wales opportunities with the ball and eventually the northerners broke through, with halfback Ffion Lewis diving over on the stroke of halftime after a good lineout drive was stopped just shy of the line.
The halftime break didn't seem to trouble the New Zealand side though, with Maiakawanakaulani Roos, Theresa Fitzpatrick and Brunt all scoring within 10 minutes of the restart. Later tries to Krystal Murray, Ruahei Demant and Ruby Tui saw the side tick over the 50-point mark – not for the first time this year.
But again, discipline was the enemy of the Black Ferns. Wales spent a considerable period of the second half inside opposition territory, and while they only managed to crack the line once – through a late lineout drive - it will be concerning for the Black Ferns as they look toward the knockout stages. Seeing two players yellow carded late in the piece, the Black Ferns ended the match on the wrong side of a 17-8 penalty count.
Black Ferns 56 (Portia Woodman 2, Sylvia Brunt 2, Chelsea Bremner, Maiakawanakaulani Roos, Theresa Fitzpatrick, Krystal Murray, Ruahei Demant, Ruby Tui tries; Demant 3 cons) Wales 12 (Ffion Lewis, Kat Evans tries; Elinor Snowsill con) HT: 22-7
