The Black Ferns scored three tries in seven minutes before halftime to turn a 7-7 stalemate into a 26-7 advantage.
The scoring spree all started in the 32nd minute when the Black Ferns delivered more offloads than the Harlem Globetrotters, with Chryss Viliko, Ruahei Demant, and Maia Roos all releasing the ball while caught in French tackles to create an opening for Sylvia Brunt to score.
Five minutes later, No. 8 Kaipo Olsen-Baker rammed ahead to build momentum on the right. After six passes in perfect symmetry, Renee Holmes crossed.
In the 39th minute from their own 22-metre line, the Black Ferns stretched the play to the right. Miller slithered out of two tackles and connected with Laura Bayfield, who strode 25 metres for her first test try.
Earlier, France had struck the initial blow. In the 10th minute, France outflanked the Black Ferns with swift distribution to the blindside. Winger and captain Marinwe Menager burst into the New Zealand 22 and offloaded the ball while being tackled to halfback Pauline Bourdon Sansus, who sharply changed her angle and dashed clear.
The Black Ferns regained possession at the restart. A high tackle on Jorja Miller awarded the Black Ferns a penalty, leading to a lineout drive that enveloped the French defence. From the rolling maul clearance, Demant threw a dummy that would have fooled even Sherlock Holmes as she cruised through untouched. Renee Holmes, no relation, successfully converted the try.
With a tournament-leading 11 tries, Braxton Sorensen-McGee epitomises the tournament slogan, "This Energy Never Stops." In the 46th minute, the Blues Aupiki champion pinballed through for her 13th try in nine tests.
A 40-metre penalty by Mastercard Player of the Match, Holmes, allowed the Waikato fullback, originally from Gisborne, to surpass Vanessa Cootes (43 tries, 215 points) and move into third place on the all-time Black Ferns scoring list.
When Sorensen-McGee crossed again after more fluid Black Ferns attack at the hour mark, it seemed that French resistance had completely waned. However, France rallied, often exploiting space with clever kicks behind the defence and playing with abandon. Three tries in ten minutes by openside flanker Lea Champon, second five-eighths Gabrielle Vernier, and fullback Emilie Boulard closed the deficit to 39-26 with eight minutes remaining.
Holmes sealed the outcome with a second 40-metre penalty in the 79th minute.
With 55 missed tackles from both countries, the contest perhaps lacked the intensity of a final. Still, there were notable performances from Holmes, Sorensen-McGee, Demant and Bayfield, who topped the tackle count with 23 and helped the lineout operate without a hitch. Loose forwards Miller (21 tackles and eight carries) and Olsen-Baker (15 carries and 13 tackles) were also damaging.
French lock Madoussou Fall Raclot, with 12 tackles and several strong surges, proved to be a handful.
In the 57th minute, Black Ferns winger Portia Woodman-Wickliffe was brought to tears as she left the field to a rousing reception. The leading try-scorer in Rugby World Cup and Black Ferns history finishes her illustrious career at 34 years old, having scored 50 tries in 34 Tests, of which she won 28, including World Cup finals in 2017 and 2022.
The referee for the match was Ella Goldsmith from Australia, officiating her 14th Test match. She is the first Australian official to referee a medal match in the tournament since Amy Perrett officiated the Rugby World Cup final in 2014 in France. At 27 years old, Goldsmith is the youngest official at the tournament; she previously refereed the Black Ferns' opening round, where they won 54-8 against Spain in York.
Overall, the Black Ferns have recorded 115 wins, two draws, and 23 losses out of 140 Test matches. Their Rugby World Cup record stands at 41 wins and only three losses. The Black Ferns have never lost consecutive World Cup games and have defeated France for the fifth time in tournament history, having previously won in the semi-finals in 2002, 2006, 2010, and 2021. The Black Ferns now lead France 8-5 in all matches; France has finished third in Rugby World Cup tournaments six times, with a record of 33 wins and 16 losses.
Black Ferns 42 (Braxton Sorensen-McGee 2, Ruahei Demant, Logo-I-Pulotu Lemapu-Atai’i Sylvia Brunt, Renee Holmes, Laura Bayfield tries; Renee Holmes 3 cons, 2 pen)
France 26 (Pauline Bourdon Sansus, Lea Champon, Gaby Vernier, Emilie Boulard tries; Carla Arbez con, Lina Tuy 2 cons)
