Black Ferns put away USA in Sacramento
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- 2 min read
Triple tries to winger Mererangi Paul has helped take the Black Ferns to a 48-15 victory in their opening Pacific Four match in Sacramento.
A strong second half took New Zealand from just 19-15 ahead to the big win for coach Whiteney Hansen in her first game in charge of the side.
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Paul crossed in the eighth, 15th and 52nd minutes, showing her speed, kick-and-chase and brilliant finishing skills.
Renee Homes also grabbed a double and added five conversions and a penalty for a total of 23 points. She missed out on another possible conversion when the referee timed her out for taking too long.
The New Zealanders scored seven tries to two for the Americans, who played with grim determination in the first half and manged a number of steals at the breakdown.
For all the positives for their win, the Black Ferns have discipline problems to sort out with three yellow cards issued against them. One of them - against reserve prop Tanya Kalounivale for head contact during a cleanout, was upgraded to red, with the TMO declaring it had "a high degree of danger".
Liana Mikaele-Tu'u and Vici-Rose Green also got yellow cards, with the team playing with just 13 on the field at one stage late in the match, which finished in torrential rain at Heart Health Park .
The Black Ferns play Canada in their next match next Saturday, with the New Zealanders keen to avenge their World Cup semifinal loss when the teams last met in September.
