HOT FAVOURITES England opened their women’s Rugby World Cup campaign in imperious style by crushing Fiji 84-19 while France were also convincing winners on day one on Saturday.
England extended their unbeaten run to 26 matches and scored their most points in a World Cup game, but only after surviving early fireworks from the Fijians and taking a tight 24-14 advantage into halftime.
The ninth edition of the tournament opened with two entertaining affairs, with fellow European heavyweights France earlier scoring six tries to dispatch South Africa 40-5.
A triple-header of matches was to conclude at Eden Park when defending champions New Zealand face Australia.
By that stage, the crowd is expected to swell to a capacity 40,000, a record for any women’s rugby match.
Six Nations champions England left little doubt they will be the team to beat at the 12-nation tournament, unleashing a mix of speed and power in a match that brought together the highest- and lowest-ranked teams.
Claudia MacDonald scored four tries while fellow winger Lydia Thompson bagged a double in what was a record World Cup points haul for the English, surpassing their 82-0 demolition of Kazakhstan in 2010.
But Thompson admitted it had been a sluggish first half by England’s high standards, before they let loose after the break.
“We’ve got a lot to reflect on, Fiji really came at us and gave us a really good match,” she said, after her side racked up 14 tries.
“We went back to basics, to what England are known for, which is set piece and earning the right to go wide.
“I think we’re really pleased but it’s good to shake off some of those nerves.”
There were signs of rust from England in the first spell, with Fiji’s expressive style regularly puncturing holes in the defence and creating tries to wingers Alowesi Nakoci and Vitalina Naikore.
However, the game Pacific Island outfit barely saw the ball in the second half, conceding six tries in the third quarter, unable to combat the precision of the world’s top-ranked side.
The most memorable England try went to reserve winger Abby Dow, playing her first Test since breaking her leg against Wales in April.
- ‘Big start’ -
In the opening game of the tournament, France started and finished strongly in a victory based around the class of their halves pairing.
Scrum-half Laure Sansus — named player of the tournament in this year’s Six Nations — crossed twice while fly-half Caroline Drouinas scored a try and set up two others with exquisite short kicks.
The fourth-ranked French raced 19-0 ahead against South Africa inside the opening quarter but were kept scoreless for 50 minutes before a late flurry.
A physical South African side were rewarded for periods of dominance through a try to winger Nomawethu Mabenge before France created three late tries, including a score after the final hooter to winger Joanna Grisez.
France captain Celine Ferer said her side struggled at times with the size of their opponents and may have been daunted by the occasion.
“We’re in a mythical stadium, maybe a little bit of pressure to be in a magnificent stadium like this and it’s the first match,” she said.
“We are very happy. We put on 40 points and we wanted to make a big start today.”
