The Black Ferns have capped off their opening round win at the Rugby World Cup with good news on the medical front.
Match-day regulars Kaipo Olsen-Baker, Ayesha Leti-I’iga and Amy du Plessis will remain with the team after leaving the field under injury clouds in the 54-8 win overSpain on Monday morning. Their return to play timelines are yet to be determined.
Loose forward Olsen-Baker, who was returning after a foot injury, was stretchered off the field early in the second half due to a lower leg injury. After an initial assessment, she was cleared of an ankle fracture and will undergo further observation to determine what her return to play pathway will look like.
It’s a similar case for winger Leti-I’iga (ankle) and du Plessis (shoulder), who will also undergo further assessment to determine when they can return to play.
All three players remain with the team as they travel to Exeter for their test against Japan on Monday morning (NZ time).
Kaipo Olsen-Baker was stretchered off in the second half of the Black Ferns' win over Spain. Photo / AFP
Du Plessis was injured after being tackled close to the try line in the first half, but was able to play through until halftime before being replaced. Leti-I’iga left the field midway through the second half and was seen receiving treatment on her left leg on the sidelines - but not before scoring a second-half double.
While du Plessis was replaced at the break, Olsen-Baker and Leti-I’iga were not replaced and the team instead played a large chunk of the second stanza with 13 players.
“We had a fair idea we were probably going to go down a bit. Ayesh probably could have stayed on,” Black Ferns director of performance Allan Bunting said.
“Cards happen quite often and you have to play with players down, so it was a good chance for our ladies to play with 13 players.”
There will be plenty for Bunting and his team to take away from the match. The lineout and scrum functioned well, they were able to break Spain down and really implement their running game in the second half – coinciding with some of their more regular starters getting involved.
They struggled with handling and execution through the early stages of the match, but those errors seemed to lessen as they found the rhythm through the test.
Spain did have some success challenging the Black Ferns at the breakdown, though, and did threaten to break out on counterattacks off Black Ferns’ errors in the first half. The Black Ferns also conceded a try in the last play of the game, unable to keep a late Spanish surge at bay.
The win saw them go top of the group after the first round, with Ireland claiming a 42-14 win over Japan earlier this morning to sit second.
Christopher Reive joined the Herald sports team in 2017, bringing the same versatility to his coverage as he does to his sports viewing habits.
