The Black Ferns co-captain has high hopes that New Zealand’s ability to host and win the Rugby World Cup in 2021 will have a profoundly positive effect on the women’s game in the country.
The celebrations by the New Zealand players at Eden Park following their Rugby World Cup victory have already become recognizable images.
Before the competition began, co-captain Ruahei Demant wouldn’t have dared to imagine the sights that would occur, including the players performing a celebration Haka, signing autographs, and dancing while wearing sunglasses.
Wild scenes broke out among the Black Ferns and the vast majority of the 42,579 spectators jammed into the renowned stadium as a result of Joanah Ngan-last-second Woo’s leap to interrupt the England lineout and the ensuing knock-on that terminated the game.
Fly-half At Eden Park, Demant won the Mastercard Player of the Match award, and she is hoping that the team’s achievement will have a long-lasting effect on the women’s game in New Zealand.
“Our nation’s degree of support for us has been just incredible. None of us, as players, really anticipated this, she said.
“Walking out of the tunnel and you can’t even think because it’s so loud is still quite odd. We’ve gone to Eden Park three times and it’s been sold out twice. The throng is really noisy.
“I never ever would have imagined that we would have this degree of fan participation when the World Cup was announced here in New Zealand because we’re not really that kind of nation.
“In the past, when we’ve had the chance to visit other nations and play teams like England or France there, their fans are top-notch.
“When they announced that our World Cup would be held at home, I became quite concerned, but you couldn’t have scripted it based on how the nation has developed. It was surreal.
“As a team, we discussed wanting to motivate the country. I believe we succeeded in doing that, and it’s still amusing to say that since it was a challenging task to complete. Just unbelievable.
RESISTING URGE
As the game entered its last 10 minutes and the hosts trailed 14-player England, Demant may have been the most composed player in Eden Park.
The fly-half remained utterly certain that her team will prevail and win a sixth Rugby World Cup championship despite the pressure coming from the scoreboard and the crowd, especially after Kennedy Simon was given the sin-bin.
Funny thing is, even though we were behind for the majority of the game, Demant didn’t feel like his team was in danger of losing.
“I don’t base that on the opposition; I base it on the composure our 15 players shown on the field.
“We only needed to get the ball there; we knew where the space was. We attempted to keep the ball in and avoid giving up any penalties since we were certain that their lineout drive would destroy us.
“It required 23 players and 80 minutes. The fact that we had a yellow card was irrelevant. I suppose I’m actually simply proud of all 32 of us [in the larger squad].
When asked what gave him such confidence, Demant responded, “The faith we have in one another, as well as the freedom that we have to play.
“We won, but we were unable to play our game, which was one of the best things about our semi-final. We were certain that we could play our best game in the championship.
“When our minds are clear and we play with delight, we play rugby at our best. I suppose that’s where the tranquility originated.
ENGAGED FANS
All of this is a sharp contrast to the Black Ferns’ tour of Europe in November of last year, during which they suffered historic losses to both England and France.
Demant participated in all four games, and after the championship game, he commended the way the players had “turned themselves around” after what had been a trying time for everyone.
A shift in the coaching staff has contributed to this progress. Wayne Smith, a two-time champion of the men’s Rugby World Cup, joined the team as director of rugby and, with the assistance of several well-known friends, began to alter the Black Ferns’ strategy for the match.
“I recall that when Smithy first presented himself to us, he stated he never went along with the crowd and always did things his way. He is exactly the kind of coach you would expect,” Demant stated.
“I believe the biggest difficulty for us as players was the mental aspect, not the skill aspect. When the opposition showed us certain photographs, he pushed us and asked, “How can we score off this?”
“It’s challenging when you’re not used to thinking that way; he certainly doesn’t follow the rules. The most significant impact Smithy has had on our group is that.
“The players they chose have displayed that courage the courage to play differently during all of our campaigns.
“That’s what makes the kind of game we play so exciting. It certainly deviates from the norm. Both watching and playing it are thrilling.
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