The Black Ferns have made wholesale changes for their first ever Test in Scotland, naming two potential debutants and keeping just seven starters from the side that beat France in Lyon last weekend.
Prop Ngano Tavake and fullback Maia Davis are both on the bench for the WXV Global Series match against Scotland at Hive Stadium in Edinburgh. Kick-off is 5.10pm on Saturday local time, which is 4.10am on Sunday 20 September in New Zealand. The match is live on Sky Sport 1.
The team was announced by New Zealand Rugby this morning, and RNZ Sport reported that only seven of the players who started against France keep their place in the run-on side, with a couple of positional changes as well.
Head coach Whitney Hansen, in her first season in charge, said the Scotland game was a chance to give fresh players a taste of the international game while the side kept building its combinations.
“I want to congratulate Ngano and Maia on being named to make their Black Ferns debut, it will be a special moment for them and their whānau,” Hansen said.
She described Tavake as a player who lets her rugby do the talking. “Ngano’s actions speak louder than her words. She’s incredibly humble, hardworking and has continued to impress us with what she brings to the group, both on and off the field,” Hansen said.
Of Davis, she said “Maia is a talented athlete, and we’ve all loved supporting her growth in this environment.”
The new-look front row has props Maddison Robinson and Mo’omo’oga Palu either side of captain Georgia Ponsonby at hooker. Palu has just one Test cap. Maama Mo’onia Vaipulu comes into the second row alongside Laura Bayfield, and the loose trio is Layla Sae and Elinor-Plum King with Mia Anderson at number eight.
Sae made her return to Test rugby in the second half in Lyon after 20 months out injured, according to the official match report. She now gets a start.
In the backs, Tara Turner starts at halfback outside Hannah King at first five-eighth. Alena Saili and Amy Du Plessis form the midfield, Shyrah Tuliau-Tua’a and Justine McGregor are on the wings, and Braxton Sorensen-McGee is at fullback.
Several of the players who did the heavy lifting against France drop to the bench. Tighthead prop Veisinia Mahutariki-Fakalelu, halfback Maia Joseph and midfielder Sylvia Brunt all join Tavake and Davis among the replacements, along with Vici-Rose Green, veteran forward Maiakawanakaulani Roos and Amarante Sititi. Roos has 44 caps, the most in the match-day squad.
Two players are unavailable through injury. Loose forward Kaipo Olsen-Baker has a shoulder problem and wing Ayesha Leti-I’iga has a calf injury.
The Black Ferns are also without co-captain and first five-eighth Ruahei Demant, who was ruled out of the rest of the European tour with a calf injury picked up against South Africa earlier this month. Wellington and Hurricanes Poua back Arene Landon-Lane was called into the squad as her replacement, though she has not been named in the 23 for this match. Demant is staying with the team for the rest of the tour.
The Black Ferns arrive in Edinburgh on a seven-Test winning streak. They beat France 28-14 at the Matmut Stadium in Lyon, with tries to McGregor, Anderson, Mererangi Paul and Liana Mikaele-Tu’u. France had won 14 of their previous 18 home games, and Ponsonby called the defensive effort “awesome” and “our best of 2026”.
Hansen was not entirely satisfied. After the match she said “We weren’t urgent enough at the breakdown,” pointing to the French threat over the ball and to pressure that did not turn into points often enough. She said those were things the side needed to fix straight away with Scotland and England to come.
Scotland look like a softer target on paper. They opened their own campaign at the same ground last Saturday and were beaten 64-26 by Canada, who scored ten tries, RugbyPass reported. Scotland are under interim head coach Dave Butcher, and loose forward Evie Gallagher, who missed this year’s Six Nations with injury, scored their first try.
The history between the two sides is all one way. New Zealand have won every Test against Scotland, including a 76-0 win at the 1998 World Cup, a 30-9 win at the 2005 Churchill Cup in Ottawa and a 21-0 World Cup win in 2006, according to New Zealand Rugby’s records. The most recent meeting was in October 2022, when the Black Ferns beat Scotland 57-0 in Whangārei in the last pool match of the World Cup they went on to win.
This weekend’s match is still a landmark. It is the first time the Black Ferns have played a Test in Scotland, and the first time Scotland have hosted New Zealand’s women at home.
The WXV Global Series replaced the old three-tier WXV competition this year. After Scotland, the Black Ferns travel to London to play world champions England at Allianz Stadium on Sunday 27 September (2am New Zealand time). France then come to New Zealand for three Tests, in Hamilton on 17 October, Whangārei on 24 October and Christchurch on 31 October, as listed on the Black Ferns WXV page.
With England looming a week later, the Scotland game gives Hansen a chance to look at depth without risking too much. Whether Tavake and Davis both get on the field will depend on how the game goes, but a first cap in Edinburgh would be a memorable way to start a Test career.
The full Black Ferns team, with Test caps in brackets, is Maddison Robinson (6), Georgia Ponsonby (43, captain), Mo’omo’oga Palu (1), Maama Mo’onia Vaipulu (13), Laura Bayfield (11), Layla Sae (20), Elinor-Plum King (3), Mia Anderson (6), Tara Turner (5), Hannah King (16), Shyrah Tuliau-Tua’a (2), Alena Saili (6), Amy Du Plessis (28), Justine McGregor (5) and Braxton Sorensen-McGee (12). The reserves are Vici-Rose Green (8), Ngano Tavake (uncapped), Veisinia Mahutariki-Fakalelu (9), Maiakawanakaulani Roos (44), Amarante Sititi (2), Maia Joseph (22), Sylvia Brunt (35) and Maia Davis (uncapped).
Are you getting up at 4am to watch the Black Ferns in Edinburgh, and who would you like to see get more game time before the England Test? Tell us in the comments below.
This article was written by AI, briefed to report the facts, hopefully without some of the bias people bring to the job 🙂
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