Jillaroos vs Ferns shows us the Warriors must return to the NRLW

The final regular round of the Women’s Rugby League World Cup did not disappoint.

With some of the more developing nations being given the opportunity to play each other, there were close fixtures almost entirely across the board.

A try in the dying moments to Alanna Fittes saw the Canada Ravens get their first win of the Tournament, beating Brazil by 22-16.

Even without two of their key players in Kimiora Breayley-Nati and Kiana Takairangi, the Cook Islands physically dominated France winning 26-18 and England continued their dominance to beat the Papua New Guinea Orchids by 42-4.

But the most surprising result to date was the Australian Jillaroos narrow 10-8 victory over the New Zealand Ferns.

With the Jillaroos widely tipped to win the Tournament, many were surprised at how close this fixture actually was.

Not only did the Jillaroos concede their first points in this World Cup, but also found themselves trailing for the first time.

But despite making 16 errors during the game, the Jillaroos were able to hold on and win by just two points.

New Zealand’s defence was extremely impressive from the start, holding Australia out for three consecutive sets in the first five minutes and Amber Hall tested the Jillaroos al night, tunning for 164 metres with 11 tackle breaks.

Raecene McGregor continued her exceptional NRLW form and led the team admirably, with her kicking game leading to the Ferns first try of the match.

Following the match, Jillaroos coach Brad Donald credited that resilience for helping the Jillaroos win the game, noting that trailing late in a fixture is not an experience many of his players have had while wearing the green and gold jersey.

“You saw the resilience of some of the players that didn’t let their heads drop when there were a couple of errors or after the one-on-one strip,” said Donald.

“At the end of the game, Sammy Bremner was running as hard as she was at the start of the game even though she made couple of errors throughout.”

But despite Jillaroos fans being on the edge of their seats for the fixture, it was certainly positive as competition and rivalry in the women’s game is what helps it grow.

Whilst the Jillaroos cruised to victory in the first two games of the tournament, it is games like the most recent against the Ferns which will push the Jillaroos and their rivals to continue to improve.

“At half time, I told the players that this is what we were after and this is what we need,” said Donald.

“You can’t go in and expect to win every game easily and take home a World Cup.

“We have been looking forward to a game like this and it gives us a chance to work on our defence and polish out attack.”

The result of this game perhaps results in more questions than answers.

How big is the gap between the Jillaroos and countries like New Zealand and England?

Given the talent in the Jillaroos squad, how challenging is it for Donald to pick his best 17? We saw another example of players playing out of position tonight, with Emma Tonegato playing at lock and certainly being an asset in that spot, particularly in defence.

But what it absolutely tells me is getting the New Zealand Warriors back into the Women’s National Rugby League Premiership is a must.

Australia’s Samantha Bremner (Photo by Mike Egerton/PA Images via Getty Images)

While most of the women in the Ferns team have played NRLW at some point, several players did not play in the 2022 season including the likes of captain Krystal Rota.

It’s clear how much talent there is in New Zealand and this talent must continue to grow and be given the opportunity to test itself in the best competition in the world, being the NRLW.

The result sets up two brilliant clashes in the women’s semi-final stages, with New Zealand playing England and Australia playing the Orchids.

Many of the Jillaroos will line up against their NRLW teammate Elise Albert, who captains Papua New Guinea.

“It has been great to watch the Orchids and see their confidence build,” said Donald.

“We normally play them annually and we want to see the growth of rugby league for women in Papua New Guinea so it is good to see them doing so well.

“They will be tough. We had a tough hit out in the forwards against the Ferns and there will be another one on Sunday.”