Grisez treble blows Italy away

France…………….39pts Italy………………….. 3pts

By BEN JAYCOCK

WINGER Joanna Grisez scored a hat-trick as France secured an emphatic victory over Italy to book their place against New Zealand in the semi-finals.

“We are so happy to play a semi-final next week,” France captain Gabrielle Vernier said. “I'm so proud of the girls. It's been a tough few weeks and today we proved we are one of the best teams. It's a dream come true and I hope for the best for the team.”

After Grisez's opener, the turning point in the match came with a penalty try after Italy infringed at a scrum near their own line and Silvia Turani, singled out as the offender, was sent to the sin-bin.

After the penalty try came an avalanche of four tries in the last quarter which made France's win one of their most emphatic in recent matches against their European neighbour.

Annick Hayraud's side cashed in immediately on their numerical advantage with a try to Laure Touye, then Grisez touched down in the 68th and 70th minutes to complete a rare World Cup triple.

France should have scored in the 45th minute when they had a three-player overlap but cut back inside and they blew another missed opportunity two minutes later when Charlotte Escu- dero dropped the ball over the line.

Les Bleues will be a dangerous proposition in the semi-finals, especially on the basis of their defensive performances, having conceded just 21 points in four games in the tournament so far.

Italy were playing in their first quarter-final and will look to build on this experience.