Kiwis Ferns v Fetu Samoa result: New Zealand scrape home with come-from-behind Pacific Championships win

The Kiwi Ferns staged a dramatic second-half comeback to edge Fetu Samoa 22-20 in their Pacific Championships opener at Go Media Mt Smart Stadium.

Trailing 20-0 at halftime and clearly second-best, New Zealand turned the tide with three tries in five minutes early in the second half, with Mele Hufanga’s runaway effort with six minutes remaning levelling the scores before Patricia Maliepo’s conversion sealed the win.

Despite the victory, coach Ricky Henry will be demanding improvement ahead of their clash with the Australian Jillaroos at Eden Park in two weeks.

Henry said he was relieved to come away with the win.

“I felt like if we just did the basics right, we would figure it out,” the coach said. “It just took us a long time to do it.

“We got too many good players in it for us not to sort of come back there and have some fight in us, and that’s what I was really proud of.

“You don’t really come back from a 20-nil deficit in an international game against some quality players. We just stayed strong and believed in what we were doing.”

Samoa were unlucky not to come away with the win, with the Kiwi Ferns’ experience ultimately proving decisive. Dual-code internationals Maliepo and Shakira Baker, along with co-captain Georgia Hale, were standout performers, along with Hufanga.

The result highlights the rise of Samoa under coach Jamie Soward, who has guided them to an unbeaten run since their 2023 return and qualification for next year’s Rugby League World Cup in Australia and Papua New Guinea.

Samoa, who didn’t play a test between 2011 and 2019, then again from 2021 - 2023, impressed early with clinical execution, dominating possession and boasting a superior completion rate.

Soward was visibly disappointed after the match, but pleased with the growth and journey his side have been on.

A pre-match ceremony celebrated 30 years of the Kiwi Ferns, with past players joining in the haka.

Both teams had early chances denied by the Bunker, but Samoa struck first through Shalom Sauaso, who scored with her first touch after being on the field for just 45s. That opened the floodgates, with Sarina Masaga, Destiny Mino-Sinapati – via a 90m intercept – and Tavarna Papalii adding tries to give Samoa a commanding halftime lead.

New Zealand looked shaky after the break but found their rhythm, scoring three quick tries through Shanice Parker, Ashleigh Quinlan and Alexis Tauaneai to close the gap to 20-16.

Parker appeared to have levelled the match with 10 minutes to go but lost control of the ball. Hufanga then capitalised on a loose kick to score and Maliepo’s conversion gave the Ferns their first lead.

In the dying moments, Brianna Clark escaped a sin bin for a dangerous tackle that gave Samoa one last chance, but New Zealand’s defence held firm to escape with the win.

Ben Francis is an Auckland-based reporter for the New Zealand Herald who covers breaking sports news.