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‘Didn’t play like New Zealand’: Black Ferns Sevens survive thrilling opener
By Finn Morton
Defending world champions New Zealand have opened their new SVNS campaign with an enthralling 19-14 win over newly promoted South Africa in Dubai on a beautiful morning in Dubai.
South Africa were less than a minute away from what would’ve been an early contender for the upset of the season, and they had New Zealand camped deep within their own half too.
But the Black Ferns Sevens lived up to their status as champions with a clutch effort in defence. After winning a turnover mere metres out from their try line, they made their way down the field.
Fans couldn’t look away as the clash came down to a moment of destiny. Eventually, the match was defined by a passage of individual brilliance from New Zealand captain Sarah Hirini.
Hirini, 30, felt an immense sense of “relief” as the World Sevens Series veteran ran away for a long-range try at the death. There was only about 30 seconds left to play as the Kiwi dotted the ball down.
The full-time whistle sounded soon after which saw the “best team in the world” officially live up to expectations from back home by opening their campaign with a hard-fought win.
“I love it, I love being the best team in the world, that’s what we strive for every day,” Hirini told RugbyPass after the win over South Africa.
“Wearing the Black Ferns Sevens jersey, you’re expected to win – New Zealand expects you to win every game and it’s great.
“We still won and we’re talking like we potentially lost. That’s pretty crazy to play in a team like that.
“I’m proud to represent this jersey and hope the games are not so close next time but I’m sure they will be. We’re playing Great Britain and Fiji so it doesn’t get any easier.
“We were just making silly errors. We’ve got some of the best players in the world who don’t make those kind of errors.
“We probably won’t have a game like that again which is nice. We just didn’t play like New Zealand but that’s okay, we’ve got another game to be able to rectify it.”
Playing in a pool alongside Great Britain and Fiji, South Africa showed the rugby world that they’ll be a tough team to beat this season after making their way to the series by promotion.
South Africa are new to the circuit after winning World Rugby’s Challenger Series on home soil earlier this year. With speedster Nadine Roos leading the way, they look more than capable of something special this season.
“Probably not a surprise for us. We watched quite a bit of their footage and knew they were going to be great,” Hirini added.
“They’ve got some amazing footy players – seen some girls play in Japan. We definitely weren’t taking them lightly, we just made quite a few errors that made it hard on ourselves.
“I love when teams come out and play us like that. We want to change the game and the only way it’s going to do that is if we get pushed.
“It was pretty tough and go in that last little bit when they were right on our line and obviously (Nadine) Roos is a pretty good player in getting those chip and chases.
“I’m just so proud. It’s tough to win sevens matches, especially on the World Series at the moment.
“To start a season off with a win is a big tick and we can move on now.”
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Latest Comments
Hopefully Joe stays where he is. That would mean Les, McKellar, larkham and Cron should as well. It’s the stability we need in the state programs. But, if Joe goes, RA with its current financial situation will be forced into promoting from within. And this will likely destabilise other areas.
To better understand some of the entrenched bitterness of those outside of NZ and NSW (as an example 😂), Nic, there is probably a comparison to the old hard heads of welsh rugby who are still stuck in the 1970s. Before the days where clubs merged, professionalism started, and the many sharp knives were put into the backs of those who loved the game more than everyone else. I’m sure you know a few... But given your comparison of rugby in both wales and Australia, there are a few north of the tweed that will never trust a kiwi or NSWelshman because of historical events and issues over the history of the game. It is what it is. For some, time does not heal all wounds. And it is still festering away in some people. Happy holidays to you. All the best in 2025.
Go to commentsNot surprised to see Barretts rating. He has always been a solid defender for the ABs but not particularly effective in attack situations.
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