Allan Bunting has been true to his word.
The Black Ferns’ director of performance has been clear in his desire to balance giving everyone in the 32-strong squad in England game time with building as the tournament progresses.
By the end of Monday morning’s clash against Japan in Exeter all 32 players will have taken to the field.
Bunting and the selectors have made 11 personnel changes in the starting line-up from the 54-8 win over Spain in the opening round, as well as four positional shifts; Alana Bremner moving from loosehead lock to tighthead lock, Jorja Miller moving to blindside flanker, Layla Sae to No 8 and Braxton Sorensen-McGee to fullback.
“It’s going to be the first game for a few ladies this week, and a couple are backing up. But like I said, it’s all 32 players, and we’ve got the ultimate respect for Japan,” Bunting said.
“They’re a well-coached team. We’ve seen them grow, they kick well, they defend well, across the board they’re technically and tactically really sound. Obviously we’re really focused on our game, but we’ve got real big respect for them and we’ve got to play this game really well.
“We want to build off last week, really want to build off that and then we’ll look into the weeks after this, but we’re just completely focused on this week.”
The positional shifts in the loose trio are particularly intriguing.
Miller will make her first test start at blindside after a couple of starts in the No 7 jersey, with Kennedy Tukuafu returning from a knee injury at openside flanker. As a result, Layla Sae shifts from blindside to No 8, donning that jersey for the first time this season for the Black Ferns. Liana Mikaele-Tu’u, last week’s player of the match, shifts from No 8 to the bench.
They’re moves that will give the selectors clarity over their options and how to best utilise the players in those positions moving on in the tournament, with a strong group of flankers in the squad and reigning Black Ferns player of the year Kaipo Olsen-Baker under an injury cloud.
“I said it last week. It’s around all 32 players and we want to give everyone an opportunity in these first couple of weeks,” Bunting said.
“In terms of Jorja and, you know, [it’s] Kennedy’s first game back for a bit now and she’s returning to play, so pretty exciting to have them both on the field. I don’t think it’s going to really matter the number on the jersey at the end of the day, they’re going to both be up there and to have them both on the field at the same time is pretty special for us.”
The Black Ferns will look to take another step in their defence of the World Cup against Japan, after a shaky start in their opening pool game against Spain.
While the New Zealand side ended up running away with a 46-point win to claim a bonus point and sit top of the table, there was plenty to work on as handling errors and poor execution at times hampered their attack.
They’re expected to face a tougher test against world No 11 Japan, who had some strong moments in their 42-14 loss to Ireland.
“I thought we started really strong in terms of our mindset and our intent, and even this week, we’ve had a couple of weeks or two and a half weeks together and our ladies’ intent to grow and build has been really impressive, and obviously that’s our game,” Bunting said.
“I think we had 17 errors, but we don’t want our ladies to stop. We just need to get better. That’s our game and we want to keep the ball alive.”
Black Ferns: 1. Chryss Viliko, 2. Georgia Ponsonby, 3. Tanya Kalounivale, 4. Maiakawanakaulani Roos, 5. Alana Bremner (cc), 6. Jorja Miller, 7. Kennedy Tukuafu, 8. Layla Sae, 9. Risaleaana Pouri-Lane, 10. Ruahei Demant (cc), 11. Katelyn Vahaakolo, 12. Logo-I-Pulotu Lemapu-Atai’i Sylvia Brunt, 13. Stacey Waaka, 14. Portia Woodman-Wickliffe, 15. Braxton Sorensen-McGee.
Bench: 16. Atlanta Lolohea, 17. Kate Henwood, 18. Veisinia Mahutariki-Fakalelu, 19. Laura Bayfield, 20. Liana Mikaele-Tu’u, 21. Maia Joseph 22. Renee Holmes, 23. Theresa Setefano.
Sandy Park, Exeter. Monday, September 1. Kickoff at 1am NZT.
Christopher Reive joined the Herald sports team in 2017, bringing the same versatility to his coverage as he does to his sports viewing habits.