Rugby World Cup, hard win for the New Zealanders

New Zealand won their sixth world title in women’s rugby on Saturday 12 November. They barely beat England (34-31) after an amazing and intense final.

This new victory for the Black Ferns, in a match with eleven tries, halts at the same time a run of 30 consecutive successes for the Red Roses, first in the world rankings. Their most recent defeat dates back to July 2019 against… New Zealand.

And so Ruby Toy’s teammates retained their title, which they won in 2017 against … England, world champions in 2014.

suspense until the end

However, the New Zealanders were trailing for a long time (19-26 at half-time), against the more physically fit Englishmen and yet it went down to 14 from the 18th minute, after full-back Lydia Thompson was sent off for a tackle. Kiwi winger Portia Woodman, who was off injured, was not checked.

With unlucky players on either side, Emily Scarratt on the England side and Renee Holmes on the black side, each team can only rely on their most attacking players, especially forwards for the red roses and backs in the black ferns.

But with 42,500 spectators, in a supercharged stadium, the New Zealanders managed to get back on the scoreboard every time, before taking the lead after a career-high Leti-l’iga try (71).

French woman in bronze

The bronze medal in the competition went to France, which had defeated Canada (36-0) just before, during a one-way match. With five tries, including a double from winger Maren Menagher, the women’s fifteenth from France overcame the disappointment she suffered in the semi-finals, losing by a small point (25-24) to the New Zealanders to finish third.

Les Bleues thus won their sixth bronze medal in nine editions, and coach Thomas Darracq paid tribute to “A very positive result,” It bodes well for the future, with the Six Nations in the spring and especially the 2025 World Cup in England.

In the Women’s Rugby World Cup, France is the country that has finished in third place most often. This was indeed the case in 1994, 2002, 2006, 2014 and 2017.