England captain Sarah Hunter says anyone believing they would ease to the World Cup title was not being “respectful” of New Zealand.
The next day, England had to grind out a 41-5 victory against Australia in wet conditions to reach the semi-finals.
“We’ve always known what they were capable of,” Hunter said of the hosts.
England, who will face Canada in the semi-finals on Saturday, became World Cup favourites when they claimed back-to-back record wins against holders New Zealand in November 2021.
The Black Ferns had a two-year break from Test rugby because of Covid-19 before those games and brought in esteemed coaches from the men’s game after the defeats.
Men’s World Cup-winning coach Wayne Smith has taken charge of the side, with Graham Henry offering support too.
“There was no way they were going to be the team they were when they came over to us in the autumn,” said Hunter, who became the most-capped women’s and England international with her 138th appearance on Sunday.
“Anyone that wrote them off beforehand was not being respectful towards them.”
England head coach Simon Middleton agreed, claiming New Zealand have “got to be favourites” given their wins so far and the home advantage.
If maul ‘isn’t broke, it doesn’t need fixing’
The Red Roses have enjoyed unprecedented dominance over the past three years, winning a record 29 Tests in a row in a run that dates back to July 2019.
Understandably, there are few areas of concern for such a successful side but some have questioned the reliance on their driving maul.
In the pool stage, England scored 17 of their 28 tries from the line-out – more than double the total of any other team in the tournament.
Middleton said criticism of the tactic “baffles” him, and Hunter added: “No one’s going to look back at how England scored – they’ll look at the result.
“If it isn’t broke, it doesn’t need fixing. We know if we need to strike, we’ve got amazing backs to be able to give it to them.
“I don’t think there’s any concerns within ourselves about how we want to play or what we’re doing.”
