John Mitchell has rewarded Flo Robinson with a first start at scrum-half for England’s final WXV Global Series fixture against the United States as the Red Roses look to bounce back from successive defeats.

Mitchell has refreshed his team for their clash against the US, with Robinson one of six changes for the match on Friday in New York.

Bruised from their two-match defeat by Canada, England will be looking to bounce back in their final Test of 2026 but must do so with an experimental outfit as Mitchell continues to prioritise rotation and squad depth.

Robinson has been England’s third-choice nine for a large chunk of Mitchell’s reign but her patience has been rewarded with a first start. She has been a reliable operator for Exeter Chiefs in Premiership Women’s Rugby and has been tasked with filling an attacking gap that Mitchell has identified from his side’s challenging North American tour.

“I’m looking for a running threat at nine – I just feel we don’t threaten enough from nine,” Mitchell said. “Flo possesses that and she also has a very good kicking game and is a great defensive player as well. You’re nine and 10 definitely need to be threats. I think we’ve become a little bit predictable in that area and I really want to look at the threat that Flo brings.”

Robinson will link up with Holly Aitchison in a new half-back partnership, which should give Mitchell plenty to ponder, while Claudia Moloney-MacDonald is drafted back into the starting side after being dropped for the second Canada Test in Ottawa. Elsewhere among the backs, Tatyana Heard replaces Helena Rowland at inside centre, where she will partner captain Meg Jones.

In the pack, Mitchell has deployed Mackenzie Carson and Maud Muir as his starting props, with Hannah Botterman and Sarah Bern dropping to the bench.

In an illustration of Mitchell’s desire to rotate, Ellie Kildunne continues among the replacements for a second week running, while there is also no starting place for Zoe Harrison, despite the fly-half being nominated for World Rugby’s Women’s Player of the Year award earlier this week. “I don’t really think about that, I’m more team focused about getting the right performance,” when pressed on his decision to bench Harrison.

In an intriguing twist, Mitchell has been acting as his side’s defence coach this week after Shaun Edwards, who has been providing defence consultancy for the Red Roses throughout their WXV campaign, left the camp ahead of the US Test. It is understood Edwards’s early departure had been pre-arranged when he joined up with the squad last month.

The US are in the throes of a rebuild after last year’s World Cup and should pose less of a challenge for England, who must dust themselves down after those defeats by Canada, the first time they have lost back-to-back Tests in a decade. The squad had a recovery day on e-bikes around Central Park this week and have enjoyed downtime sightseeing around New York.

“We’ve looked to refresh the group because it was a tough series against Canada and we want to create opportunities with renewal and continue to build depth,” Mitchell said. “We’re getting pretty close to exposing girls to consistently playing Test rugby.

“I’ve been waiting for maybe a dip. For me, it’s really exciting to get the info we have. I’ve tried some things – we have a lot of young players who are going into their 11th Test match this year and have some outstanding players to come back too. There’s been some things that I’ve tried and haven’t paid off, but I’m OK with that.”

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