The Black Ferns have been given a Rugby World Cup wake-up call, battling from behind to maintain their unbeaten record against Australia 22-14 at Adelaide Oval.
Down to 14 players early, the NZ women faced a 7-0 first-half deficit, but scored 22 unanswered points to seal victory, albeit a much tougher contest than their 52-5 romp in last week's Laurie O'Reilly Cup opener at Christchurch.
The result will give coach Wayne Smith plenty to work on over the next six weeks, before these two rivals meet again in their World Cup opener at Eden Park on October 8.
After dominating the Wallaroos seven days earlier, the Ferns were quickly on the backfoot, after second-five Chelsea Semple was knocked out by a head clash that also saw her - or her replacement - yellow-carded for a dangerous as she was helped off the field.
As Semple lay dazed, Australia scored through debutant Bienne Terita, who had botched an open try just moments before. First-five Arabella McKenzie slotted a sideline conversion and the home side seemed to have turned their performance around from the previous week.
The Black Ferns managed their shorthanded 10 minutes expertly, with co-captain Ruahei Demant reducing the deficit with a penalty. When Hazel Tubic eventually replaced Semple to restore their full quota, the Kiwi women took the lead soon after, with a try to hooker Luka Connor, converted by Demant.
Ahead 10-7 at the break, New Zealand has also lost co-captain Kennedy Simon to injury, but eventually consolidated their advantage with a second try to lock Joanah Ngan-Woo, who had made several charging runs and dominated lineouts through the opening half.
The Ferns had plenty of chances to run up the score, but basic errors let them down, with Aussie flanker Emily Chancellor dominant at the breakdown.
Their third try came in almost identical circumstances to their first two, when openside Kendra Reynolds was driven over from a ruck, after the NZ forwards had battered away at the Australian tryline for several phases.
Ironically, as Smith tries to develop an expansive gamestyle among the Ferns, all three tries came from close-range forward exchanges.
The Wallaroos had the last laugh though, when McKenzie intercepted a pass inside her own 22 and turned defence into attack, with Terita notching a try double on debut.
New Zealand 22 (Connor, Reynolds & Ngan-Woo tries; Demant penalty & 2 conversions) Australia 14 (Terita 2 tries; McKenzie 2 conversions)
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