The Prague Post - New Zealand and Canada to face off in Women's Rugby World Cup semi-final

New Zealand, the record six-time World Cup winners and unbeaten at the tournament since 2014, were given a scare by a South Africa side appearing in their first quarter-final as the Springboks defied all pre-match expectations to be level at 10-10 come half-time.

The Black Ferns replied with 29 unanswered points in a match they eventually won 46-17 in Exeter.

New Zealand captain Ruahei Demant admitted the team had been on the receiving end of some strong words at the interval.

"We got a bit of a ruck-up in the sheds (changing rooms), particularly us backs," she said. "Our accuracy wasn't good enough and it wasn't the standards that this jersey demands."

Turning to the semi-final with Canada, second in the world rankings with the Black Ferns third, she added: "We played them this year at home in Christchurch and the game ended in a draw, so we know that we will have not a lot of room for error. Our performance will need to be bang-on."

It was Springbok captain Nolusindiso Booi's final game after the veteran second row announced she would retire following the World Cup.

"I'm so emotional right now but I am also proud of the progress of our team," said the 40-year-old Booi.

Canada overwhelmed Australia 46-5 in Bristol, with the North Americans 31-5 ahead at the break after running in five tries in the opening 40 minutes.

They will return to Bristol's Ashton Gate on Friday for a clash with New Zealand, who have beaten England in five of the last six finals.

"You can't be over-confident but for sure we are confident," said Canada coach Kevin Rouet. "We battle against them (New Zealand) a lot so it is going to be a tight game."

- 'Adaptable' England -

Sunday's quarter-finals are all European, with top-ranked England taking on Scotland and fourth-placed France up against Ireland, who are fifth in the standings.

The Red Roses -- unbeaten since losing the 2022 World Cup final -- are bidding to break their own record of 30 straight Test wins. They face a Scotland side who last beat their border rivals in 1999.

England will be buoyed by the return of captain Zoe Aldcroft from injury but will be without full-back Ellie Kildunne after the 2024 world player of the year suffered a concussion against Australia last week.

The Red Roses thrashed the Dark Blues 59-7 in this season's Six Nations, although forecast bad weather in Bristol on Sunday could bolster Scotland's chances.

England coach John Mitchell said: "We believe that we can adapt to all weather conditions," adding: "We don't need to be scoring 10 out of 10."

Bryan Easson, the outgoing Scotland coach, said: "We came to qualify for the quarter-finals. We've got the quarter-finals; we're top six in the world so I would say we're making real progress."

The most intriguing of all the quarter-finals is the clash between France and Ireland, with victory for either side in Exeter a realistic possibility.

France won 27-15 when the teams last met in the Six Nations with Ireland prop Linda Djougang saying: "We came so close. We know the challenge ahead of us."

Ireland suffered a 40-0 hammering by New Zealand in their concluding pool match, but France captain Marine Menager said: "We expect Ireland to come at us hard, and we'll have to deliver a massive performance."

F.Vit--TPP