USA, New Zealand win women’s rugby matches in KC, breaking record after midnight
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- Severe thunderstorms delayed Pacific Four Series matches in Kansas City, pushing starts.
- New Zealand beat Canada 36-14 after overcoming first-half turnovers in KC.
- USA defeated Australia 33-12 just after 12:30 a.m., setting a record for crossing midnight
Lightning flashed. Thunder rolled. Storms came and went. And although the matches were delayed by three hours, women’s rugby fans were boisterous while watching four of the best teams in the world.
In the second appearance of the Pacific Four Series at CPKC Stadium, players from Australia, Canada, New Zealand and the United States got to experience playing in Kansas City. Last year, USA and Canada squared off to begin the tournament in the first stadium purpose-built for a professional women’s soccer team — in front of the largest crowd ever for an American women’s rugby match.
Fans filled the stadium and shared cheers for New Zealand and Canada during their 2025 Women’s Rugby World Cup rematch. The start was pushed back from 5:15 p.m. to 8:10 p.m., however, because of severe thunderstorms. The Midwest wind howled throughout the evening, up to nearly 30 mph.
Players were pleasantly surprised by how many fans braved the cold, breezy conditions and 30-degree temperature drop. It was around 50 degrees by the end of the doubleheader.
“I was actually shocked at the amount of fans who are here today,” New Zealand captain Ruahei Demant said. The longest serving captain in team history completed seven tackles and was third on the team with 25 passes.
“For fans, not just supporting New Zealand and Canada, but just the fans here that supporting America, supporting America more. It was such an electric atmosphere out there, and it was always going to be a good game to watch, and the crowd fed into that.”
New Zealand, the second-best team in the world according to World Rugby, overcame first-half turnovers to avenge their semifinal loss to third-ranked Canada 36-14. The majority-Black Ferns crowd was locked into the match, clamorous with every big hit, with the noise level rising as teams got closer and closer to their opponent’s in-goal area.
The world powerhouse mesmerized the crowd since before the opening whistle with a famous haka: a ceremonial dance of the Māori people of New Zealand that involves rhythmic movements and chants. A haka is performed by the country’s national sports teams to challenge opponents before contests.
During the action, music played through the continuous stoppages, keeping the crowd engaged.
While the crowd slimmed down by USA-Australia’s start time at 10:40 p.m., they had uproarious moments with many U-S-A chants for the Women’s Eagles. USA avenged their World Cup draw with Australia, getting a comfortable 33-12 win just after 12:30 a.m. Saturday morning.
Last year, internationally known star personality and player Ilona Maher was one of the main draws. She is currently in Hong Kong supporting the 7s team.
The unpredictable Midwest weather resulted into a lengthy evening that set another rugby record. It was the first international rugby match to start on one day and end on the next while playing in the same time zone, USA Rugby officials told The Star.
After the match, USA captain Erica Jarrell-Searcy said she was satisfied with their performance under new head coach Jack Hanratty. Each team is playing their first few games together since the World Cup ended in late September, with lots of new players and some players away from the team with the nation’s 7s squads, concurrently competing in Hong Kong.
“It’s been a long time coming, sort of waiting for the other shoe to drop, knowing what this team can and should be,” Jarrell-Searcy said. The team considers Australia a close rival because they are similar as programs, and ranked so closely.
“To see it starting to come, satisfied and so, so proud of the group.”
The matches capped a week of cross-cultural experiences for the teams, but mostly New Zealand and Australia players. The Black Ferns were welcomed to the city at the airport by local New Zealand dance group Te Waka Ora, who performed a haka at their arrival. Australian players got their kicks by watching the clouds form during the storms and got a taste of KC barbecue at Joe’s; interim head coach Sam Needs was asking for burnt ends after the match.
After playing in Sacramento last weekend, American players are encouraged by their home crowds as they play more in front of their home fans. They are taking advantage of the recent boom in women’s rugby, thanks to Maher and the recent World Cup.
They enjoy Kansas City as the proud sports city that it is, especially as a city that supports women’s sports with a historic stadium. Players and officials have expressed an eagerness to make KC a must-stop when the national team comes together.
“You go into the bathroom, there’s tampons. And that’s a small thing to people outside of the community, but to us, that’s that’s ability to focus on the game,” Jarrell-Searcy said.
She completed 10 tackles with five passes against Australia.
“Having fans chanting relentlessly USA during our warm up at 11 p.m. in Kansas City? I mean, it’s so hard to put into words that the gratitude for the way that America has responded to USA Rugby as an entity. And they’ve given us more and more and more home games, and the fans keep showing that we deserve it, and there’s just so much gratitude and excitement.”
After the early Saturday win, USA is third in the PAC4 standings behind New Zealand and Canada. The three-match tournament ends with rivalry matchups next Friday in Chicago, when USA faces Canada and Australia battles New Zealand.
This story was originally published April 18, 2026 at 12:32 PM.
