Wales lost 55-3 but Cunningham feels they made considerable progress during the tournament.
“I’m super proud. I thought the girls were excellent last night, especially in the first half. We were physical and we forced the Black Ferns to make skill errors.
“We 100% learned from our Pool games, especially our first game against New Zealand two weeks ago. We disrupted their pick and go game quite successfully and the players really put their bodies on the
line. They need to take a lot of credit from that.
“We will take a lot of heart from this performance which showed we can compete physically with one of the best teams in the world.
“To play the world champions twice in two weeks is so valuable.
“This is just the start of our journey but it’s a special one and one I’m very proud to be part of.
“Becoming professional rugby players this year has changed the lives of many of these players, it’s something they’ve waited a long time for.
“Contracts have changed the lives of these players, it’s something they waited a long time for and I’m excited for the future.
“We need to rest and recover and then it will be all systems go for the Six Nations which will soon be on us. But we can take a lot of confidence from the progress we’ve shown during this tournament, from the last-minute win over Scotland, to being so competitive against Australia and gaining an invaluable losing bonus point, to our two performances against New Zealand.”
Kia Ora Aotearoa!
