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New Zealand women's national rugby union team

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Not to be confused with New Zealand women's national rugby sevens team, New Zealand women's national rugby league team, or New Zealand national rugby union team.

New Zealand
Shirt badge/Association crest
NicknameBlack Ferns
UnionNew Zealand Rugby
Head coachAllan Bunting
CaptainKennedy Simon
Most capsKendra Cocksedge (68)
Top scorerKendra Cocksedge (404)
First colours
Second colours
World Rugby ranking
Current2 (as of 6 November 2023)
Highest1 (2003-2012, 2013-2020)
Lowest2 (2012, 2020)
First international
 New Zealand 56–0 Netherlands 
(Christchurch, New Zealand; 26 August 1990)
Biggest win
 Germany 6–134 New Zealand 
(Amsterdam, Netherlands; 2 May 1998)
Biggest defeat
 England 56–15 New Zealand 
(Northampton, England; 7 November 2021)
World Cup
Appearances8 (First in 1991)
Best resultChampions (1998, 2002, 2006, 2010, 2017, 2021)
Websiteallblacks.com
Women's
World Rugby Rankings
Top 20 rankings as of 25 November 2024[1]
Rank Change* Team Points
1 Steady  England 097.56
2 Steady  Canada 089.31
3 Steady  New Zealand 088.64
4 Steady  France 085.11
5 Steady  Australia 078.10
6 Steady  Ireland 078.03
7 Steady  Scotland 076.82
8 Steady  Italy 074.75
9 Steady  United States 074.20
10 Steady  Wales 072.58
11 Steady  Japan 066.41
12 Steady  South Africa 066.18
13 Steady  Spain 065.42
14 Steady  Russia 061.10
15 Steady  Samoa 060.56
16 Steady  Netherlands 060.20
17 Steady  Fiji 059.14
18 Steady  Hong Kong 056.20
19 Steady  Kazakhstan 055.23
20 Steady  Sweden 052.72
*Change from the previous week

The New Zealand women's rugby union team, called the Black Ferns (Template:Lang-mi),[2][3] represents New Zealand in women's international rugby union, which is regarded as the country's national sport.[4] The team has won six out of nine Women's Rugby World Cup tournaments.

They have an 84 per cent winning record in Test match rugby, and are the only women's international side with a winning record against every opponent. Since their official international debut in 1990, the Black Ferns have lost to only four of the sixteen nations they have played against — England, France, Ireland, and the United States. They have never been ranked lower than second in the World Rankings since its introduction in 2003. The team performs a Haka before every match; this is a Māori challenge or posture dance. Traditionally the Black Ferns use the haka Ko Uhia Mai.

History

Women's rugby in New Zealand was rising in the late eighties, but recognition and assistance from New Zealand Rugby Football Union (NZRFU) wasn't available.[5][6] It wasn't until 1989 that women's rugby started to get official recognition with the organisation of matches by provinces and clubs.[5][6] On July 22 that year, New Zealand fielded their first women's rugby union team against a touring United States side, the California Grizzlies.[7][6]

Team's name

The team's name refers to the Mamaku, the black tree fern, which is a taonga (treasure) of Aotearoa. It also aligns with the colour black and the silver fern, which are iconic New Zealand sporting symbols. For example, the All Blacks is New Zealand's men's rugby team, the Black Caps is the men's cricket team, the White Ferns is the women's cricket team, while the Silver Ferns is the women's netball team.

World Cup wins

The Black Ferns have participated in most Rugby World Cup events since its inauguration in 1991, only missing the 1994 championship in Scotland. Starting with the inaugural International Rugby Board (IRB)-sponsored tournament in 1998, the Black Ferns have gone on to win five more titles — including the 2002, 2006, 2010, 2017, and the 2021 tournament which was hosted in New Zealand.[8][9]

Funding

While rugby is the most popular spectator game in New Zealand, the Black Ferns have suffered in the past from similar problems to any women's sport: under-funding, lack of support and lack of publicity. While the New Zealand Rugby Union (NZRU) and World Rugby have been criticised to an extent for not doing more to promote women's rugby, support is beginning to improve in those organisations, in large part due to the Ferns' successes.

The NZRU started funding the Black Ferns in 1995, therefore giving a great boost to their game, while the Black Ferns have benefitted from being included in NZRU High Performance initiatives. Along with professional coaches, the team has had access to professional development resources such as analysis. In more recent times, the team's profile has risen greatly at a grassroots level, due in great part to their string of successes, and it is increasingly seen to be a national team on the same basis as any other.

Provincial championship

In January 2010, the Women's Provincial Championship (WPC) came under severe threat after the NZRU announced that it would be shut down due to budget cuts. As the championship was a prime builder of training, skill and competition for New Zealand women's rugby, the decision was a shock for players and supporters, including former captain Farah Palmer - especially since it was a World Cup year.[10]

While NZRU said women's domestic rugby was one of many victims of the tight financial times, they faced widespread criticism for their decision. After the Black Ferns' 2010 World Cup victory, the NZRU immediately apologised and reinstated the WPC, which was renamed the Farah Palmer Cup in 2016 in honour of the Black Ferns' influential former captain.

International competitions

The Black Ferns have won the Canada Cup in 1996, 2000, and 2005, and the Churchill Cup in 2004. From 2002 until their last game of 2009, the Black Ferns enjoyed a streak of 24 consecutive test match wins.

In 2018, after the success of the New Zealand women's national rugby sevens team, all Sevens and Black Ferns players have been offered semi-professional contracts. They also played the first Test series against Australian Wallaroos, which was played on the same night as the Men's Bledisloe Cup Tests.

The 2018 season finished with a 1–1 drawn series against France, with France becoming only the fourth team in the world to beat the Black Ferns. The Black Ferns' loss in the final game of the year ended a 17-month long winning streak and was also the final game for captain Fa’amausili, who retired from international rugby.[11]

In 2019, the Black Ferns won the annual Women's Rugby Super Series for the second time. On 31 October 2021, the Black Ferns played their 100th test match against England at Exeter.[12][13] They hosted the 2022 Pacific Four Series and won their first title after going undefeated in the series.[14][15]

New Zealand hosted the delayed 2021 Rugby World Cup after beating out neighbour Australia for the rights.[16] New Zealand automatically qualified for the 2021 event as host. The Black Ferns successfully defended their title and claimed their sixth World Championship after beating England in the final.[17]

2023

The Black Ferns began 2023 with a new coach and a 50–0 thrashing of the Wallaroos in their first test for the year; the win saw them retain the O'Reilly Cup another year and top the Pacific Four Series on points difference.[18] Convincing wins against Canada and the United States in the rest of the series also added a second title to their acclaim.[19][20]

New Zealand hosted the inaugural WXV 1 competition on 20 October, they hosted Australia, Canada, England, France, and Wales in the top tier.[21][22] France ended their 16-game winning streak in their opening match with a 17–18 score.[19][23] A 70–7 drubbing of Wales saw them bounce back from their early defeat in their first test in Dunedin since 1997.[24][25] A title-decider with England saw a rematch of the 2022 World Cup final, the Red Roses overpowered the Black Ferns and went on to claim the inaugural WXV 1 title.[26][27]

Haka

Main article: Haka in sports

The Black Ferns perform a haka (a Māori challenge) before every international match. The Black Ferns traditionally perform the haka Ko Uhia Mai, specially composed by the Māori rugby leader Te Whetū Tipiwai.

Record

The first four games listed below – played at RugbyFest 1990 – are not generally accepted as being internationals by New Zealand authorities. However, in men's rugby it is general practice to award full international status to any games where ONE side considers a game to be an international. As a result all games in that tournament have been treated as full internationals in this article.

Overall

See also: List of New Zealand women's national rugby union team matches

(Full internationals only, updated to 4 November 2023)

Rugby: New Zealand Internationals From 1991
Opponent Played Won Lost Drawn For Against Win%
 Australia 25 25 0 0 942 178 100%
 Canada 17 17 0 0 699 154 100%
 England 31 19 11 1 691 523 61.29%
 France 11 6 5 0 323 181 54.55%
 Germany 2 2 0 0 251 6 100%
 Hong Kong 1 1 0 0 121 0 100%
 Ireland 2 1 1 0 52 25 50%
 Japan 1 1 0 0 95 12 100%
 Kazakhstan 1 1 0 0 79 5 100%
 Samoa 2 2 0 0 140 12 100%
 Scotland 4 4 0 0 184 9 100%
 South Africa 1 1 0 0 55 3 100%
 Spain 1 1 0 0 46 3 100%
 United States 14 13 1 0 645 95 92.86%
 Wales 7 7 0 0 353 55 100%
World XV 2 2 0 0 75 19 100%
Summary 122 103 18 1 4,751 1,280 84.43%

Rugby World Cup

Main article: New Zealand women at the Rugby World Cup
Rugby World Cup
Year Round Pld W D L PF PA Squad
Wales 1991 Third place* 3 2 0 1 48 21 Squad
Scotland 1994 Did not participate due to late tournament cancellation
Netherlands 1998 Champions† 5 5 0 0 344 32 Squad
Spain 2002 Champions† 4 4 0 0 202 12 Squad
Canada 2006 Champions† 5 5 0 0 202 34 Squad
England 2010 Champions† 5 5 0 0 186 33 Squad
France 2014 Fifth place 5 4 0 1 245 37 Squad
Ireland 2017 Champions† 5 5 0 0 299 61 Squad
New Zealand 2021 Champions† 6 6 0 0 268 87 Squad
England 2025 Qualified
Australia 2029 TBD
United States 2033
Total Champions† 38 36 0 2 1,749 317 Squad
  Champion   Runner-up   Third place   Fourth place
* Tied placing † Best placing Home venue

New Zealand have won the World Cup six times. They lost to eventual winners the United States in the semi-final of the inaugural competition held in Wales in 1991, but were absent from the following tournament in 1994, due to the late cancellation of the event. They defeated the United States in the final of the 1998 World Cup held in the Netherlands to claim their maiden title. They followed this up with three more consecutive titles, overcoming England in the final of the next three editions; 2002, 2006 and 2010, as well as in their fifth world title in 2017. They won their sixth World Title after defeating England 34-31 in the 2021 Rugby World Cup Grand Final.

In the 2014 Rugby World Cup, they lost a pool game to Ireland,[28] while the top two teams in another pool drew their match. This saw them miss out on the semi-finals by a single table point, before going on to heavily defeat Wales and the United States to finish the tournament in fifth.

Players

Current squad

On 11 September, Head Coach, Allan Bunting, named a 30-player squad to compete in the WXV 2023 competition.

Unavailable for selection due to injury: Charmaine McMenamin (knee), Ayesha Leti-I'iga (knee), Awhina Tangen-Wainohu (neck), and Santo Taumata (knee).

On 18 September, Grace Gago was called into the squad as a replacement for Natalie Delamere who suffered an injury during training.

On 29 October, Esther Faiaoga-Tilo and Grace Brooker were called into the squad as replacements for Tanya Kalounivale and Martha Matele who both suffered injury's.

Caps Updated To: 4 November 2023

Player Age Position Caps Franchise/Province
Kate Henwood 34 Loosehead Prop 4 Chiefs Manawa / Bay of Plenty
Krystal Murray 30 Loosehead Prop 14 Hurricanes Poua / Northland
Chryss Viliko 22 Loosehead Prop 2 Blues / Auckland
Georgia Ponsonby 23 Hooker 20 Matatū / Canterbury
Natalie Delamere 26 Hooker 3 Blues / Counties Manukau
Luka Connor 26 Hooker 20 Chiefs Manawa / Bay of Plenty
Grace Gago 25 Hooker 1 Blues / Counties Manukau
Amy Rule 23 Tighthead Prop 20 Matatū/ Canterbury
Tanya Kalounivale 25 Tighthead Prop 9 Chiefs Manawa / Waikato
Sophie Fisher 24 Tighthead Prop 2 Blues / Auckland
Esther Faiaoga-Tilo 29 Tighthead Prop 1 Blues / Waikato
Chelsea Bremner 28 Lock 18 Chiefs Manawa / Canterbury
Charmaine Smith 31 Lock 29 Chiefs Manawa / Northland
Maiakawanakaulani Roos 22 Lock 21 Blues / Auckland
Alana Bremner 26 Loose Forward 19 Matatū / Canterbury
Layla Sae 22 Loose Forward 3 Hurricanes Poua / Manawatu
Kennedy Simon (cc) 26 Loose Forward 20 Chiefs Manawa / Waikato
Liana Mikaele-Tu'u 21 Loose Forward 18 Blues / Auckland
Lucy Jenkins 22 Loose Forward 6 Matatū / Canterbury
Arihiana Marino-Tauhinu 31 Scrum-half 19 Chiefs Manawa / Counties Manukau
Iritana Hohaia 23 Scrum-half 6 Hurricanes Poua / Taranaki
Ariana Bayler 26 Scrum-half 8 Blues / Waikato
Rosie Kelly 23 First Five-Eighths 3 Matatū / Canterbury
Ruahei Demant (cc) 28 First Five-Eighths 33 Blues / Auckland
Amy du Plessis 24 Midfield 14 Matatū / Canterbury
Patricia Maliepo 20 Midfield 7 Blues / Auckland
Sylvia Brunt 19 Midfield 13 Blues / Auckland
Grace Brooker 24 Midfield 4 Matatū / Canterbury
Martha Mataele 24 Outside Back 2 Matatū / Canterbury
Katelyn Vaha'akolo 23 Outside Back 6 Blues / Auckland
Mererangi Paul 24 Outside Back 5 Chiefs Manawa / Counties Manukau
Renee Holmes 23 Outside Back 16 Matatū / Waikato
Ruby Tui 31 Outside Back 13 Counties Manukau

Notable players

Main article: List of New Zealand women's national rugby union players

Four former Black Ferns have been inducted into the World Rugby Hall of Fame: Farah Palmer, Anna Richards, Huriana Manuel-Carpenter and Fiao'o Fa'amausili.[29]

  • Farah Palmer won three Women's Rugby World Cups, in 1998, 2002 and 2006.[30] During her captaincy from 1997 to 2006, the Black Ferns lost only once. Palmer made her international debut against Australia in August 1996. She earned 35 caps, making her the fifth-most capped Black Ferns player. Palmer was awarded the IRB International Women's Personality of the Year in 2005. For the 5th Women's Rugby World Cup in Canada, Palmer fought her way back into the team and again led them to World Cup victory. After the win, she announced her retirement from the Black Ferns in September 2006.[31] The national provincial women's competition in New Zealand is named in her honour in recognition of her contribution to the game.[32] She was inducted into World Rugby's Hall of Fame in October 2014.[33]
  • Anna Richards was inducted into World Rugby's Hall of Fame in October 2014 along with Palmer.[34] She won 49 caps for the Black Ferns in a career that spanned two decades, from 1990 to 2010.[35][34] She played in the inaugural 1991 World Cup when New Zealand lost in the semi-finals.[35] Richards is also a four-time Women's Rugby World Cup winner – 1998, 2002, 2006 and 2010; she played in every final.[36]
  • Huriana Manuel-Carpenter represented New Zealand in both sevens and 15s.[37] In 2013, she captained the Black Ferns sevens side when they won the inaugural Women's Sevens Series title and the Sevens World Cup. She was also captain when the side successfully defended the series title in 2014.[38][39] She won a silver medal at the Rio Olympic Games. Manuel-Carpenter is also a two-time Rugby World Cup winner – 2006 and 2010.[38][39] Between 2005 and 2014 she scored 15 tries from 25 test appearances.[38] She is part of the first mother-and-daughter duo to have played for the Black Ferns.[39][37] She was inducted into World Rugby's Hall of Fame in October 2021.[40]
  • Fiao'o Fa'amausili was the most capped Black Fern at the time of her retirement in 2018. She recorded 50 wins from 58 games with 35 tests as captain. She scored 17 tries, the most by a forward, and won four World Cups out of the five that she has attended.[29]

Coaches

All Head Coaches of the Black Ferns (1991–Present). Every Black Fern coach has been a New Zealander.

(Full internationals only, updated to 4 November 2023)

Name Years Tests Won Lost Drew Win%
Laurie O'Reilly 1991 3 2 1 0 66.66%
Vicky Dombroski 1994–1995 2 2 0 0 100%
Darryl Suasua 1996–2002 23 22 1 0 95.65%
Jed Rowlands 2003–2006 15 15 0 0 100%
Dale Atkins 2007–2008 4 4 0 0 100%
Brian Evans [a] 2009–2010 7 6 1 0 85.71%
Grant Hansen 2011 3 0 2 1 0.00%
Brian Evans 2012–2014 15 11 4 0 73.33%
Greg Smith [b] 2015 0 0 0 0 0.00%
Glenn Moore 2015–2021 31 24 7 0 77.41%
Wayne Smith 2022 12 12 0 0 100%
Allan Bunting 2023 7 5 2 0 71.43%
Total 1991–Present 122 103 18 1 84.43%

See also

Further reading

  • Curtin, Jennifer (2016). "Before the 'Black Ferns': Tracing the Beginnings of Women's Rugby in New Zealand". The International Journal of the History of Sport. 33 (17): 2071–2085. doi:10.1080/09523367.2017.1329201. S2CID 148962837.

Notes

  1. ^ Brian Evans took a break from coaching in 2011
  2. ^ Smith voluntarily stepped down as Black Ferns Head coach without a single game.[41][42]

References

  1. ^ "Women's World Rankings". World Rugby. Retrieved 25 November 2024.
  2. ^ https://teara.govt.nz/mi/photograph/39666/black-ferns-haka
  3. ^ https://teara.govt.nz/mi/photograph/39665/black-ferns-versus-samoa
  4. ^ "Sport, Fitness and Leisure". New Zealand Official Yearbook. Statistics New Zealand. 2000. Archived from the original on 7 June 2011. Retrieved 21 July 2008. Traditionally New Zealanders have excelled in rugby union, which is regarded as the national sport, and track and field athletics.
  5. ^ a b Palmer, Farah (10 October 2013). "Opinion: Thanks JJ Stewart, and thanks Otago Spirit". Otago Daily Times Online News. Retrieved 8 February 2022.
  6. ^ a b c Harvey, Helen (10 May 2019). "Women's rugby: From hand-me-down jerseys to professional contracts". Stuff. Retrieved 8 February 2022.
  7. ^ "31 years since first official New Zealand women's team took to the field". allblacks.com. 22 July 2020. Retrieved 5 December 2022.
  8. ^ Julian, Adam (8 November 2022). "A look back at Rugby World Cup finals history". allblacks.com. Retrieved 5 December 2022.
  9. ^ Julian, Adam (12 November 2022). "Black Ferns crowned Rugby World Cup champions". allblacks.com. Retrieved 5 December 2022.
  10. ^ Cleaver, Dylan (23 January 2010). "Rugby: NZRU plan 'will kill women's rugby'". The New Zealand Herald. Retrieved 30 October 2011.
  11. ^ "Black Ferns fall to France in second test". Newshub. 18 November 2018. Retrieved 19 November 2018.
  12. ^ "Black Ferns set to play historic 100th Test match". allblacks.com. 30 September 2021. Retrieved 11 July 2022.
  13. ^ Pearson, Joseph (31 October 2021). "Milestone match ends with heaviest defeat in history as Black Ferns lose 100th test against England". Stuff. Retrieved 11 July 2022.
  14. ^ "Black Ferns win Pacific Four". Otago Daily Times Online News. 18 June 2022. Retrieved 18 June 2022.
  15. ^ "New Zealand win the Pacific Four Series 2022". www.world.rugby. 18 June 2022. Retrieved 18 June 2022.
  16. ^ "New Zealand to host 2021 Women's World Cup". The New Zealand Herald. 15 November 2018. Retrieved 19 November 2018.
  17. ^ Pearson, Joseph (12 November 2022). "Black Ferns stun England to win Rugby World Cup for a sixth time in Eden Park thriller". Stuff. Retrieved 24 July 2023.
  18. ^ "Mererangi Paul and Sylvia Brunt impress as Black Ferns beat Wallaroos". www.world.rugby. 29 June 2023. Retrieved 24 July 2023.
  19. ^ a b Julian, Adam (7 November 2023). "Looking back on the Black Ferns 2023 season". allblacks.com. Retrieved 27 November 2023.
  20. ^ "Black Ferns secure second consecutive Pacific Four Series title". www.rugbypass.com. 17 July 2023. Retrieved 27 November 2023.
  21. ^ "New Zealand to host inaugural WXV tournament". www.rugby.com.au. 5 May 2023. Retrieved 24 July 2023.
  22. ^ Orchard, Sara (5 May 2023). "New Zealand to host England & Wales in WXV series". BBC Sport. Retrieved 24 July 2023.
  23. ^ Pearson, Joseph (21 October 2023). "Black Ferns suffer first defeat in two years as France claim historic win in WXV1 opener". Stuff. Retrieved 27 November 2023.
  24. ^ Julian, Adam (28 October 2023). "Black Ferns pile on the points in Dunedin". allblacks.com. Retrieved 27 November 2023.
  25. ^ Cully, Paul (28 October 2023). "Ruby Tui scores four tries as Black Ferns thrash Wales in second WXV1 fixture". Stuff. Retrieved 27 November 2023.
  26. ^ Julian, Adam (4 November 2023). "Black Ferns fall to England in WXV 1 decider". allblacks.com. Retrieved 27 November 2023.
  27. ^ "How WXV 1 was won: England's journey to glory". www.world.rugby. 6 November 2023. Retrieved 27 November 2023.
  28. ^ "Women's Rugby World Cup: Ireland stun New Zealand". BBC. 5 August 2014.
  29. ^ a b Julian, Adam (9 November 2022). "Fa'amausili on Hall of Fame induction and the Rugby World Cup". allblacks.com. Retrieved 20 November 2022.
  30. ^ "Palmer leads by example in New Zealand". www.world.rugby. 19 May 2020. Retrieved 24 June 2022.
  31. ^ "Farah Palmer announces retirement". Archived from the original on 28 October 2006. Retrieved 2 December 2006.
  32. ^ "About the Farah Palmer Cup". Provincial Rugby. Retrieved 24 June 2022.
  33. ^ "Farah Palmer - World Rugby - Hall of Fame". www.world.rugby. Retrieved 24 June 2022.
  34. ^ a b Piddington, Stu (18 November 2014). "Anna Richards inducted to IRB's Hall of Fame". Stuff. Retrieved 24 June 2022.
  35. ^ a b "Anna Richards: "I don't want to put a limit, you've got to dream"". www.world.rugby. 7 June 2019. Retrieved 24 June 2022.
  36. ^ "Hall of Fame award a boost for women's rugby, says Anna Richards". South China Morning Post. 17 November 2014. Retrieved 24 June 2022.
  37. ^ a b "Huriana Manuel-Carpenter inducted into World Rugby Hall of Fame". RNZ. 28 October 2021. Retrieved 24 June 2022.
  38. ^ a b c "Multi World Cup winner Huriana Manuel-Carpenter inducted into World Rugby Hall of Fame". Stuff. 28 October 2021. Retrieved 24 June 2022.
  39. ^ a b c "Huriana Manuel-Carpenter to be inducted into World Rugby Hall of Fame". allblacks.com. 28 October 2021. Retrieved 24 June 2022.
  40. ^ "Huriana Manuel-Carpenter - World Rugby - Hall of Fame". www.world.rugby. Retrieved 24 June 2022.
  41. ^ Davis, Hanne (16 August 2015). "New Zealand Rugby confirm Greg Smith won't return as Black Ferns coach". Stuff. Retrieved 8 February 2022.
  42. ^ Davis, Hanne (16 June 2015). "Greg Smith voluntarily stands down for Black Ferns tour of Canada over ref abuse". Stuff. Retrieved 8 February 2022.
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