‘Clinical’ Black Ferns aim to take the flamboyance out of France in three test tour

The second and fourth best teams in women’s rugby clash in an historic series in Hamilton, Whangārei and Christchurch over the next three Saturdays.

While the Black Ferns and France have met 14 times since 1996, with New Zealand holding a 9-5 advantage, they have never met in a series on New Zealand soil. Their only two previous matches in this country were decided by a single point. In the 2022 Rugby World Cup semi-final at Eden Park, the Black Ferns won 25-24. The following year in Wellington, France won 18-17.

Will it be as close in 2026? The Black Ferns, ranked second in the world, appear to have greater depth and momentum, but France are capable and unpredictable, making for an engrossing spectacle.

Like their men, the French women are a powerful, enigmatic force in rugby. France beat the Netherlands 4-0 in the first official women’s rugby international on June 13, 1982, in Utrecht. Since that momentous day, they’ve won 204, lost 90, and drawn 7 of their 304 internationals. France have attended every Rugby World Cup since 1991, winning 32 of 48 games, finishing third seven times. In the Six Nations, which started in 1996, France have won six times but not since 2018, and finished runners-up 16 times.

France have won six of eight tests in 2026, losing to England 43-28 in Bordeaux in May and to New Zealand 28-14 in Lyon in September. The Black Ferns had two recent matches before that clash against Australia (66-19) and South Africa (52-20), and it showed.

Despite occasional flashes of brilliance, the French attack lacked cohesion, and their lineout was a shambles. The Kiwi visitors kicked 27 times. Is that the most in Black Ferns’ history? With France leaking possession faster than Wellington water pipes, the Black Ferns’ path to success was simple: keep them down their end and apply pressure. Stand-in Black Ferns skipper, hooker Georgia Ponsonby, described the win as “awesome” and “our best of 2026.”

France were fiercely competitive at the breakdown. Exceptional loose forwards Axelle Berthoumieu, Léa Champon, and Charlotte Escudero made 49 of their 50 tackles and snatched several turnovers. Unfortunately, Escudero is absent for this tour.

France fared even worse in their next outing against Australia but somehow prevailed 29-26 in one of the most chaotic Tests ever at the Stade Maurice David in Aix-en-Provence.

Farcically, France was hit with four cards in 20 minutes as Ambre Mwayembe, Lea Champon, and Lea Murie were all binned for high tackles. Mwayembe’s was upgraded to a 20-minute red before Chloe Correa got a straight red for eye-gouging in the maul.

Yet down 19-0, France found a way to win with three tries in the last 19 minutes even after a second-half delay caused by a nearby burning bus that sent thick black smoke across the area.

Emilie Boulard, a brilliant counterattacking fullback who won the World Rugby Try of the Year Award in 2021, sparked the resurgence. Midfield back Gabrielle Vernier, who carved up the Black Ferns in that historic 18-17 win in Wellington in 2023 – the Black Ferns’ first defeat in 16 tests – is another player who can pull rabbits out of hats.

However, when France are locked in, they can be miserly, too. Canada was expected to beat France on September 26 after holding England to a 26-26 draw, their worst home result since 2015. Instead, France shut Canada down completely with a passionate, disciplined, clinical defensive stand, 21-5. Boulard scored two tries. Escudero had 21 tackles. The lineout worked efficiently, and France kicked 31 times to control territory.

Halfback Pauline Bourdon-Sansus has won 50 of her 79 Tests for France and scored 22 tries. She is the best halfback in the women’s game but, unfortunately, will not tour New Zealand for personal reasons. With back-up captain Manae Feleu prioritising her medical studies, halfback Alexandra Chambon will lead the side.

Chambon told France Rugby: “The goal, obviously, is to go out and perform well away from home against a top-four team. We’ve shown that we’re on the right track: we learn from every match, and no two games play out the same way.

“I know I’ll be well supported by Gabi [Gabriel Vernier], Annaëlle [Annaëlle Deshayes] and Léa [Léa Champon]. It makes the experience even better to share it with them. I already have plenty of experience playing alongside these players in the matches and competitions we’ve been through together. We get along really well, which will be a huge help in this role, and we’ll be able to support one another.”

France also appointed a new coach this year. François Ratier led Canada to the 2014 Rugby World Cup final. Domestically, he has enjoyed major success in France. During his time in charge of Stade Bordelais, he guided the Lionesses to back-to-back French titles. France improved quickly after the Wallaroos chaos.

Ratier said: “We have a young team – an average age of 24 – with very few caps. Within the context of our current cycle, this is the right time to introduce new players. We need to see these younger additions in action immediately. We made this decision to help them get their foot in the door alongside the more experienced players, so we can gauge what they can contribute to the team during this cycle.

“With this group, if everyone delivers their best performance, we are capable of securing wins in New Zealand. We may not be the favourites, but that should actually help the players feel freer – allowing them to play with significantly less pressure than if we were a squad with an average of 60 caps per player, just three months out from the World Cup.”

In their heartbreaking 26-19 defeat to world champions England at Twickenham on September 26, the Black Ferns wobbled England to the canvas several times. The visitors forced the Red Roses to make 188 more tackles, had two tries disallowed, and then when tied 19-19 at fulltime, Amy du Plessis threw a brazen pass that became an early Christmas present for English first-five Zoe Harrison. It’s their only loss in eight tests.

Though the Black Ferns’ set-piece has made giant strides from a dismal effort against South Africa, where they conceded three tries from lineout drives and four yellow cards mostly from scrum penalties, the scrum was an issue against England. The Red Roses scored a soft try from that source and won the penalty count.

Clinical is a word coming out of the Black Ferns’ camp this week. Winger Mererangi Paul, who scored a try in the win against France in Lyon, was almost like a parrot repeating the phrase.

“We’ve had that drilled into us. We know what our individual role is, how to do it, so it’s up to us to nail it. If we all get it right as individuals, we’ll nail it as a team,” she said.

The Black Ferns can still enthral with breathless counterattack, but there is greater pragmatism to their game. The win in Lyon featured an unheard-of, but contextually smart, 27 kicks.

Coach Whitney Hansen observed: “Great teams are clinical and we leave things out there. We always knew going away on that end-of-year tour overseas would give us different competition, tests, and challenges. It would give us a line in the sand to see where we’re at and where we need to improve. We need to be more clinical.”

France will make that difficult, acknowledged Paul. “They’re hard to read on attack, fast and unpredictable with a good kicking game,” she said. “Our forwards did a great job last game in shutting down their threats, especially their lineout. They’ll have to front again.”

The Black Ferns have played the past three Tests without co-captain Ruahei Demant. Hannah King has grown significantly as a replacement No 10. Flankers Elinor-Plum King and Mia Anderson and prop Veisinia Mahutariki-Fakalelu are other rookies who have made huge strides. The rest of the squad looks settled with Georgia Ponsonby, Maia Roos, Liana Mikaele-Tu’u, Sylvia Brunt, and Ayesha Leti-I’iga now seasoned test players. The Ferns should be aiming for a whitewash.

Rochelle Martin recently became the 180th inductee into the World Rugby Hall of Fame. She’ll receive her special cap before the French test in Christchurch.

Between 1994 and 2006, the uncompromising flanker played 32 Tests for the Black Ferns, winning 31 times and scoring 14 tries.

A member of the 1998, 2002 and 2006 Women’s Rugby World Cup-winning teams, she was never better than in the 2006 semi-final against France in Edmonton. The Black Ferns won 40-10, as Martin scored two tries against the reigning Women’s Six Nations Grand Slam champions who had won 18 consecutive Tests.

“I think that was the closest I got to playing a perfect game. The French were a phenomenal team; big, strong, unpredictable, but we were so clinical, unlike the final where England pummelled us for the first 20 minutes, and all we could do was defend to survive,” Martin reflected.

“To receive an honour like the Hall of Fame for doing something that filled my cup is unbelievable. My wife asked me the other day if we are going on a trip overseas. I said ‘yes, we’re going to Christchurch’. I live in Auckland and have never been to the new stadium. Receiving my Hall of Fame cap before the Christchurch match is special because that French game in 06 is the one game where I felt I did something significant.”

A mother of four, Martin joined the fire service in 2001 and was the fire sportsperson of the year in 2003 and 2005. In 2018, she received an NZ Order of Merit for her service to firefighting. She is currently district manager and commander at the Waitemata Fire District and coaches the Rangitoto College girls’ First XV.

First Test – FMG Stadium, Hamilton, Saturday October 17, 3.05 pm

Second Test – Semenoff Stadium, Whangārei, Saturday October 24, 3.05 pm

Third Test – OneNZ Stadium, Christchurch, Saturday October 31, 7.10 pm. All matches live on Sky Sport and streaming on Sky Sport Now