England will face Canada next on July 7, live on Sky Sports Mix, Action and Main Event
Saturday 29 June 2019 18:52, UK
Abbie Scott believes England have "another level to go to" after their 38-5 victory over the USA in the first match of the 2019 Super Series.
The Red Roses started the five-team round-robin tournament with a 38-5 bonus-point victory over the USA, but it was an overall performance which did not satisfy the visitors to San Diego.
The side have arrived for the Super Series without a number of their more experienced players. Despite that and it being a six try to one result, they expected more from themselves.
"We were frustrated at some bits in terms of our skill and finishing but actually it's quite a new squad," Scott, who led the side at the Chula Vista Olympic Training Center in California, said.
"We had to figure out how to play and how to get into the game, especially after the first 20 minutes when they had us against the wall at times. So I'm happy with that [that we found a way into it] but we are frustrated. We know that we can go to another level."
The Red Roses' victory marks England's seventh successive win in 2019, but former captain Maggie Alphonsi also agreed that the overall emotions will be discontented ones from the squad and their head coach Simon Middleton.
"First I think that he'll [Middleton] be saying, 'I'm satisfied in the sense that we got the job done, we scored six tries, got a bonus-point and got through that game'," Alphonsi told Sky Sports.
"I think that at the same time they will look at that game and go, 'There are so many things that we could have done much better,'.
"Potentially tries that they missed out on and also the discipline was in and out throughout the game. For Simon, he'll look at that and see that they have a lot to work on but it's just a shame in a way that they now have a rest week coming up.
"What happens when things aren't going so right you is that you want to get back into it again so you can have another shot at improving it. For England now they're going to have to go back and work on their errors in training, which isn't as ideal."
The Red Roses scored four first-half tries, including Claudia Macdonald's first for her country, to produce a 26-5 advantage. However, from the start, the USA made sure that their opponents didn't have an easy ride on the front foot.
Danielle Waterman believes that is something that England will learn from and that other teams in the Super Series will take note of.
"The defensive work and the line speed of the USA is what all of the other teams will be looking at," Waterman told Sky Sports.
"We regularly see England move the ball to the edge, they have absolute gas with Kelly Smith and Lydia Thompson, and we didn't see them.
"I don't think that we saw England attack very well because of pressure [from the USA] and that's something that having a new fly-half and having a new nine is where they've come unstuck. It's where those players will learn, the game management and the ability to get over the gain-line is going to be crucial."
Elsewhere the Red Roses' forwards, even when they lost Poppy Cleall for ten minutes to the sin-bin in the second half, exerted their dominance over their opponents which impressed Alphonsi.
"For England, most of their tries came from USA errors and where they have pulled off some really good set play has been in the driving maul. That's where they were almost very clinical.
"I think that going into the next game against Canada the things that they need to work on are, just doing the basics well and retaining possession.
"The longer you keep the ball for the more pressure that you put on the opposition, so for me England have to work on retaining their possession and executing in those key areas."