While Mitchell will undoubtedly take positives – Holly Aitchison’s play-making and Maud Muir’s all-action performance among them – he has plenty on his to-do list.
Top will be to tune up his team’s set-piece solidity and attacking fluency.
England suffered at the line-out early on, unable to fire up their rolling maul from two promising attacking positions before being shoved back over their own line, only for Kathryn Treder’s try to be ruled out for a obstruction call.
The scrum was also, initially at least, more closely contested than expected.
Muir was pinged as the experienced Hope Rogers grappled for set-piece supremacy.
And, all the while, the hosts were making headway at the gainline, buying territory with brute physicality – an aspect of the game which is usually England’s trademark.
The United States got their reward as Rogers burrowed beneath Maddie Feaunati for a short-range score that sparked lasting celebrations.
Jones went over after full-back Emma Sing hit a good line to restore a 10-point lead by the break, but the stats below the scoreboard favoured the United States with the hosts enjoying more territory and possession and making more metres with the ball in hand at the interval.
Moloney-MacDonald’s third and fourth scores soon after the restart put England 20 points clear and the outcome out of doubt.
The United States, who came into the match on the back of five-match winning run that includes successes over Ireland and South Africa, hung tough however.
While England’s endurance and depth told, with Hannah Botterman impressing off the bench, Ellie Kildunne weaving up from backfield on her introduction, the tide turning in the scrum and four tries scored in the final quarter, the hosts’ energy was impressive.
Even with replacement prop Mona Lisa Tupou being sent to the sin bin for a scrum infringement, their resistance and physicality stayed high and was rewarded with Zackary’s late score.
With both the attendance and the playing surface appearing patchy at the 25,000-capacity Sports Illustrated Stadium, organisers will hope to have a more impressive platform in place by the time the Women’s Rugby World Cup is held stateside in 2033.
