Advertisement

New Zealand and Canada to face off in Women's Rugby World Cup semifinal

football13 September 2025 19:34| © AFP
Share

Reigning champions New Zealand will face Canada in the last four of the Women's Rugby World Cup after the two nations enjoyed contrasting quarterfinal wins on Saturday.

New Zealand, the record six-time World Cup winners and unbeaten at the tournament since 2014, were given a scare by a South Africa side appearing in their first quarterfinal as the Springboks defied all pre-match expectations to be level at 10-10 come halftime.

The Black Ferns replied with 29 unanswered points in a match they eventually won 46-17 in Exeter.

New Zealand captain Ruahei Demant admitted the team had been on the receiving end of some strong words at the interval.

"We got a bit of a ruck-up in the sheds (changing rooms), particularly us backs," she said. "Our accuracy wasn't good enough and it wasn't the standards that this jersey demands."

Turning to the semifinal with Canada, second in the world rankings with the Black Ferns third, she added: "We played them this year at home in Christchurch and the game ended in a draw, so we know that we will have not a lot of room for error. Our performance will need to be bang-on."

It was Springbok captain Nolusindiso Booi's final game after the veteran second row announced she would retire following the World Cup.

"I'm so emotional right now but I am also proud of the progress of our team," said the 40-year-old Booi.

Canada overwhelmed Australia 46-5 in Bristol, with the North Americans 31-5 ahead at the break after running in five tries in the opening 40 minutes.

They will return to Bristol's Ashton Gate on Friday for a clash with New Zealand, who have beaten England in five of the last six finals.

"You can't be over-confident but for sure we are confident," said Canada coach Kevin Rouet. "We battle against them (New Zealand) a lot so it is going to be a tight game."

'ADAPTABLE' ENGLAND

Sunday's quarterfinals are all European, with top-ranked England taking on Scotland and fourth-placed France up against Ireland, who are fifth in the standings.

The Red Roses – unbeaten since losing the 2022 World Cup final – are bidding to break their own record of 30 straight test wins. They face a Scotland side who last beat their border rivals in 1999.

England will be buoyed by the return of captain Zoe Aldcroft from injury but will be without fullback Ellie Kildunne after the 2024 world player of the year suffered a concussion against Australia last week.

The Red Roses thrashed the Dark Blues 59-7 in this season's Six Nations, although forecast bad weather in Bristol on Sunday could bolster Scotland's chances.

England coach John Mitchell said: "We believe that we can adapt to all weather conditions," adding: "We don't need to be scoring 10 out of 10."

Bryan Easson, the outgoing Scotland coach, said: "We came to qualify for the quarterfinals. We've got the quarterfinals; we're top six in the world so I would say we're making real progress."

The most intriguing of all the quarterfinals is the clash between France and Ireland, with victory for either side in Exeter a realistic possibility.

France won 27-15 when the teams last met in the Six Nations with Ireland prop Linda Djougang saying: "We came so close. We know the challenge ahead of us."

Ireland suffered a 40-0 hammering by New Zealand in their concluding pool match, but France captain Marine Menager said: "We expect Ireland to come at us hard, and we'll have to deliver a massive performance."

Advertisement