Black Ferns Suffer Double Injury Blow on Eve of Second France Test

WHANGĀREI — The Black Ferns have been forced into two late changes on the eve of their second Test against France, with injuries stripping head coach Whitney Hansen of two players just as she prepares her side for a historic Saturday afternoon.

Starting centre Amy Du Plessis has been diagnosed with delayed concussion and will miss the Test at Semenoff Stadium while serving the mandatory stand-down period, while reserve hooker Atlanta Lolohea injured her ankle at Thursday's training session and has been removed from the lineup.

Du Plessis was one of the standout performers in last weekend's 81-12 demolition of France in Hamilton, where she starred alongside midfield partner Logo-I-Pulotu Lemapu-Atai'i Sylvia Brunt. Her absence breaks up one of the most settled combinations in Hansen's first year in charge — but it opens the door for one of the finds of the season. Star rookie Justine McGregor is promoted from the bench into the starting unit for her first run in the No.13 jersey, with veteran winger Ayesha Leti-I'iga moving onto the bench to wear No.23.

Lolohea's loss is covered by Vici-Rose Green, who comes back into the matchday 23 at No.16, while Holly Wratt-Groeneweg has been called into the wider squad as hooker injury cover.

The injuries did not stop there. Tighthead prop Mo'omo'oga Palu also went down with an ankle injury at a training session earlier in the week — she was not named in the matchday 23 — and a familiar face has answered the call: capped Black Fern Pip Love returns to the national environment as injury cover for the prop stocks.

Hansen had already rung the changes before the injury news arrived. In the forwards, Laura Bayfield starts at lock alongside Maama Mo'onia Vaipulu with Maiakawanakaulani Roos moving to the bench, while loose forward Layla Sae gets the start at openside flanker after Elinor-Plum King — who started the last six Tests in the No 7 jersey — falls out of the matchday squad in favour of Amarante Sititi among the reserves. Shyrah Tuliau-Tua'a, who scored four tries in the series opener, switches to the left wing with Mererangi Paul promoted to start on the right.

Saturday's fixture carries extra weight. It is the Black Ferns' 150th Test and the second of three matches against France in the WXV Global Series, supported by the New Zealand Government's Events Boost Fund. Kick-off is at 3.05pm NZDT, with the game live on Sky Sport in Aotearoa and highlights available on the Black Ferns YouTube channel 48 hours after the final whistle.

New Zealand are intent on ending the year on a high. The Black Ferns have made a habit of winning in Hansen's debut campaign — their only blemish in nine Tests was the last-gasp loss to England at Twickenham last month — and they head to Whangārei for their penultimate Test of the season before the third and final Test of the series in Christchurch next weekend.

The nature of Du Plessis's diagnosis underlines why the enforced changes, however unwelcome, had to be made. A delayed concussion diagnosis triggers rugby's mandatory stand-down protocols regardless of a player's importance to the game plan, and there was never any question that the medical team would overrule the team sheet.

For McGregor, the cruel luck of a teammate becomes the defining opportunity of a breakthrough season. The rookie has impressed every time she has touched the ball this year, and a first start in the No.13 jersey — against a French side stung by last week's record defeat — is the kind of examination that reveals whether a prospect is simply talented or genuinely ready for the biggest stages. She earns her seventh Test cap, while Leti-I'iga's return to the matchday 23 gives Hansen a 37-cap veteran to call on if the reshuffled midfield needs steadying.

France, for their part, arrive in Whangārei desperate to prove the 81-12 mauling was an aberration. An underpowered travelling side was ruthlessly exposed in Hamilton, but Les Bleues have pride and a reputation for responding when written off — and a disrupted Black Ferns midfield gives them something to target.

Hansen's squad has answered every question asked of it this season. Saturday will test something new: its ability to absorb a double injury blow 48 hours before kick-off and keep the standards that have defined a bright first year. The 150th Test deserves nothing less.