Springbok Women produce powerful display to dispatch of New Zealand's Black Ferns XV
Image: Henk Kruger / Independent Media
The Springbok Women's side produced their best performance of the season when they beat a Black Ferns XV side 41–26 at the Athlone Stadium in Cape Town on Saturday night.
The Bok Women, who had some tough results against Canada in a two-Test series and in the first match against the New Zealanders, put on an exhibition of power and recorded a confidence-boosting win ahead of the Women's Rugby World Cup later this month.
The Springbok Women started on the front foot, climbing in with a lot of venom and verve in the opening stages of the match.
Their bullocking runners up front punched holes in the Black Ferns' defence down the middle. The home side came close on quite a few occasions on the visitors' line, but desperate defending saw them fall short on several occasions.
However, the Bok Women took the lead in the 14th minute when left wing Ayanda Malinga went over the line after she pounced on a loose ball before sprinting clear to dive over.
The Springbok Women are firing on all cylinders 😤🇿🇦
📺 Stream #RSAvNZL on DStv: https://t.co/0P0NNhnwKw pic.twitter.com/HXpx0ho9sV — SuperSport Rugby (@SSRugby) August 2, 2025
The Bok Women were just as robust on defence, putting in some big hits to tackle their New Zealand counterparts backwards in the tackle. The Black Ferns struggled to get out of their half.
The Bok Women then extended their lead in the 17th minute when fullback Byrhandré Dolf produced a magical piece of play. Dolf saw some space in behind the Black Ferns' defence and put a kick through, before collecting her own effort and going over to score.
Outside centre Kelsey Teneti was a constant threat for the Black Ferns, and they pulled a try back to show just how dangerous they can be with ball in hand.
However, the Bok Women managed two more tries before the end of the first half, with flyhalf Libbie Janse van Rensburg and prop Yonela Ngxingolo going over to give the home side a 24–12 lead at the break.
The Springbok Women's scrum was dominant throughout the encounter, and they got a heel against the head in the 51st minute. This led to a penalty and a lineout 10 metres out from the Black Ferns' line.
Yonela Ngxingolo wants to be on that plane to the #RWC2025 😤🇿🇦
📺 Stream #RSAvNZL on DStv: https://t.co/0P0NNhnwKw pic.twitter.com/eZ443I34D2 — SuperSport Rugby (@SSRugby) August 2, 2025
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