A far cry from last week
Seven days after losing 81-12, France Women gave the Black Ferns a proper game. They still lost it 31-12, and the result hands New Zealand the three-match series with one Test to go.
The French led twice. Mathilde Lazarko drove over from a maul inside the opening minutes to make it 5-0, and Anaïs Grando scored after a kick from fly-half Carla Arbez to nudge them ahead again, 12-7. With 15 minutes left they were still only two points down at 14-12.
Then it fell apart. New Zealand scored three tries in the closing quarter and the gap became a chasm.
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What changed from the first Test
France came with a more experienced group than the one that was swept aside a week earlier, with Vernier, Arbez, Mwayembe and Boulard back in the XV. The difference showed up in the middle of the second half, when the visitors spent a long spell on top without turning it into points.
The Black Ferns, third at the last World Cup, were sharper with far less of the ball and moved back in front around the half-hour mark, never to be caught again.
The third and final Test is next Saturday, kicking off at 7.10am French time. France cannot win the series, but they can at least try to finish it with a result.
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