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Michaela Blyde scored three first-half tries for the Black Ferns Sevens in their tournamenr-opener in Vancouver. (FILE PHOTO)
The Black Ferns Sevens scored 10 tries as they opened the Vancouver leg of the World Rugby series with a 60-0 romp over newcomers Colombia.
Michaela Blyde opened the scoring after 30 seconds when breaking a tackle and sprinting more than half the field on Saturday morning (NZ time) and had competed a hat-trick of tries by halftime.
Veteran Portia Woodman-Wickliffe was chased down when she attempted to replicate Blyde’e early score, but fended off the would-be tackler to dot down, while Jazmin Felix-Hotham scored a brace of tries in the second half.
The New Zealand side was led out by Tyla Nathan-Wong, playing her 50th tournament, and she also got on the scoresheet with a try and five conversions. The 28-year-old became the second Black Ferns Sevens star to reach the half-century mark, after Sarah Hirini.
The NZ women’s side was due to play Great Britain – surprise 26-24 victors over Fiji earlier in a thrilling encounter – in their second Pool A match on Saturday afternoon (NZ time), while the All Blacks Sevens side were set to kick off their tournament in the men’s draw against the United States later this morning.
