The New Zealand Ferns ran away with a 26-16 win over the Australia Jillaroos

ADDING another chapter to the fiery rivalry, the Ferns ran away with a 26-16 win over Australia, backing up the 2-1 victory at the Auckland Nines.

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JILLAROOS captain Ruan Sims sat in the press conference with a black eye that was swollen shut, speaking nothing but praise for her teammates that refused to give up against New Zealand at Hunter stadium on Friday night.

Adding another chapter to the fiery rivalry between the two nations, the Ferns ran away with a 26-16 win over Australia, backing up the 2-1 victory they scored at the Auckland Nines earlier this year.

Sims, who came off the field after a nasty head clash late in the game, explained that the Jillaroos had an “off night” but vowed to be better the next time they faced the Ferns.

“We’ve got the talent, we’ve got the skill, and I believe we are a better team than what we showed,” she said.

“The positive was that we didn’t give up. That’s not something you can train for, it’s just something that you’ve just got — that pride in the Australian jersey. I’m really proud of the girls for stepping up and not letting it run away from them.”

Jillaroos halfback Maddie Studdon put the first points on the board with a penalty goal in the opening seven minutes but it was the last time Australia would lead during the match.

The Ferns didn’t get their hands on decent ball until 10 minutes in off a gift penalty.

Using brute force through the middle, the Ferns hammered the Jillaroos line and the defence opened up for winger Atawhai Tupaea to score on the left edge.

Ruan Sims palms off a tackle by Maitua Feterika.

Tupaea repeated the effort five minutes later off a precise cut out pass from five-eighth Georgia Hale, who had a hand in almost everything the Ferns did right. Tupaea’s double set the Ferns up early, but captain Sarina Fiso also chipped in with two tries, the last of which came in the 65th minute, to put the result to bed. Two tries to Jillaroos winger Karina Brown did enough to make the score respectable.

Despite the scoreline, which could have been uglier if the Ferns had converted all six tries, it was a close contest separated by only six points with 20 minutes to play.

Sarina Fiso is tackled by Kezie Apps of the Jillaroos.

Most of the damage came through the middle, but Hale, who was named the player of the match, set up two tries and kept the Ferns organised and moving around the tiring Jillaroos pack.

“Like our coaches say, go north before you go east or west, and with that in mind that’s what we did,” Fiso explained.

“Our forwards got a good roll on, but in patches. The Australians got on top of us now and then but with a strong defensive line we held them out.

“(Hale) played brilliantly and there is no surprises there. She’s a young girl and she’s got the right attitude. I’m looking forward to big things from her.”

Atawhai Tupaea of the Kiwi Ferns celebrates a try against the Jillaroos.

Ferns coach Alan Jackson said he will address the need for a specialist kicker over the coming year, having used four during the course of the match.

Although they fell short of their expectations, the Jillaroos have not lost sight of in the big picture.

“The fact that we had four debutants is sort of building for the World Cup, trying to give those girls some experience at this level,” said coach Steve Folkes.

“We also had another four girls in earlier in the camp and they went home on Monday for the same reason, just to give them exposure to being in that company and being in that professional situation.”