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Black Ferns make one change to their team for the World Cup final

(Photo by Hannah Peters/World Rugby via Getty Images)

Wayne Smith has made one injury-enforced change to his Black Ferns team for Saturday’s sold-out World Cup final versus England, Charmaine McMenamin replacing Liana Mikaele-Tu’u at No8 after a thumb injury was sustained in the 25-24 semi-final win over France.

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A statement read: “The Black Ferns team to face England for the Rugby World Cup title has been named. Black Ferns coaches have made just one injury-enforced change to their matchday 23 with 2017 World Cup winner Charmaine McMenamin replacing Liana Mikaele-Tu’u, who sustained a thumb injury in the semi-final victory.

“The team features six players who took part in the 2017 World Cup final against the same opposition, with McMenamin joined by Sarah Hirini, Kendra Cocksedge, Portia Woodman, Theresa Fitzpatrick and Stacey Fluhler in lining up for consecutive finals.”

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Black Ferns director of coaching Smith said: “Throughout this whole campaign selection has been incredibly difficult. We are pretty happy with the continuity in this line-up and only the one change this week. Charmaine comes into the team and she has already had some good minutes on the field during the World Cup and obviously brings that experience from 2017 as well.

“It is going to be a massive challenge. We are playing against possibly one of the greatest teams in the history of rugby, they have won 30 Tests in a row which is remarkable and it’s going to take a huge effort. The support for the team has been amazing but that also brings its own challenges, we have to show that we can cope with those challenges and focus on playing the rugby that we love.”

Related

This will be the 30th Test between the Blacks Ferns and England, the countries having first met in 1997. The Black Ferns have won 18, drawn one and lost 10. It will also be the fourth time the teams have met in a World Cup final, most recently the Black Ferns coming from behind to win 41-32 in Ireland in 2017.

There have only been three Tests between the nations since the last World Cup, the Black Ferns winning in San Diego in 2019 – England’s last defeat before going on a 30-match winning streak, including two wins over the Black Ferns last year.

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Black Ferns (vs England, Saturday)
1. Phillipa Love (24)
2. Georgia Ponsonby (12)
3. Amy Rule (11)
4. Maiakawanakaukani Roos (13)
5. Chelsea Bremner (11)
6. Alana Bremner (12)
7. Sarah Hirini (16)
8. Charmaine McMenamin (30)
9. Kendra Cocksedge (67)
10. Ruahei Demant (25) – co-captain
11. Portia Woodman (24)
12. Theresa Fitzpatrick (17)
13. Stacey Fluhler (24)
14. Ruby Tui (9)
15. Renee Holmes (9)

Replacements:
16. Luka Connor (13)
17. Krystal Murray (8)
18. Santo Taumata (6)
19. Joanah Ngan-Woo (16)
20 Kennedy Simon (12) – co-captain
21. Ariana Bayler (7)
22. Hazel Tubic (21)
23. Ayesha Leti-I’iga (20)

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H
Hellhound 49 minutes ago
South Africa player ratings | 2024 Autumn Nations Series

There is this thing going around against Siya Kolisi where they don't want him to be known as the best national captain ever, so they strike him down in ratings permanently whenever they can. They want McCaw and reckons he is the best captain ever. I disagree.


Just like they refuse to see SA as the best team and some have even said that should the Boks win a third WC in a row, they will still not be the best team ever. Even if they win every game between now and the WC. That is some serious hate coming SA's way.


Everyone forget how the McCaw AB's intimidated refs, was always on the wrong side, played on the ground etc. Things they would never have gotten away with today. They may have a better win ratio, but SA build depth, not caring about rank inbetween WC's until this year.


They weren't as bad inbetween as people claim, because non e of their losses was big ones and they almost never faced the strongest Bok team outside of the WC, allowing countries like France and Ireland to rise to the top unopposed.


Rassie is still at it, building more depth, getting more young stars into the fold. By the time he leaves (I hope never) he will leave a very strong Bok side for the next 15- 20 years. Not everyone will play for 20 years, but each year Rassie acknowledge the young stars and get them involved and ready for international rugby.


Not everyone will make it to the WC, but those 51/52 players will compete for those spots for the WC. They will deliver their best. The future of the Boks is in very safe hands. The only thing that bothers me is Rassie's health. If he can overcome it, rugby looks dark for the rest of the rugby world. He is already the greatest coach in WR history. By the time he retires, he will be the biggest legend any sport has ever seen

4 Go to comments
J
JW 1 hour ago
'They smelt it': Scott Robertson says Italy sensed All Blacks' vulnerability

No where to be seen OB!


The crosses for me for the year where (from memory);


This was a really hard one to nail down as the first sign of a problem, now that I've asked myself to think about it. I'd say it all started with his decision to not back form and fit players after all the injuries, and/or him picking players for the future, rather ones that could play right now.


First he doesn't replace Perofeta straight away (goes on for months in the team) after injury against England, second he falls back to Beauden Barrett to cover at fullback against Fiji, then he drops Narawa the obvious choice to have started, then he brings in Jordan too soon. That Barret selection (and to a lesser extent Bell's) set the tone for the year.


Then he didn't get the side up for Argentina. They were blown away and didn't look like they expected a fight and were well beaten despite the scoreline in my opinion. Worst performance of the year in the forth game and..


Basically the same problems were persistent, or even exaggerated, after that with the players he did select not given much of an opportunity, with this year having the most number of unused subs I can remember since the amateur days.


What I think I started to realise early on was that he didn't back himself and his team. I think he prepared the players well, don't get me wrong, but I'll credit him with making a conscious choice in tempering his ambition and instead choosing cohesion and to respect (the idea of it being important in himself and his players) experience first and foremost (after two tight games and that 4th game loss). I think he chose wrong in deciding not to be, and back, himself. Hard criticism.


And it played out by preferring Beauden to Dmac on the EOYT (though that may have been a planned move).


I hope I'm right, because going through all the little things of the season and coming up with these bullets, I've got to wonder when I say his last fault is one we have seen at the Crusaders, playing his best players into the ground. What I'm really scared of now is that not wanting a bit of freshness in this last game could be linked with all these other crosses that I want to put down to simple confidence issues. But are they really a sign that he just lacks vision?


Now, that's not to say I haven't seen a lot of positives as well, I just think that for the ABs to go where they want to go he has to fix these crosses. Just have difficult that will be is the question.

27 Go to comments
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