Red Roses beat USA in New Jersey in WXV Global Series as Moloney-MacDonald scores four tries
England's Red Roses defeated the United States at Sports Illustrated Stadium in New Jersey in a WXV Global Series match on Friday, October 30, 2026, with Claudia Moloney-MacDonald crossing the whitewash four times to extend England's unbeaten run against the USA dating back to 1991.
The victory continued a sequence that began after the Eagles' last win over England at the 1991 Rugby World Cup, a stretch of 22 consecutive England wins. The result also followed England's recent setbacks to Canada in this WXV Global Series, while the USA arrived on the back of five straight wins that included victories over Wales and Ireland.
Moloney-MacDonald, who had been omitted from England's matchday 23 against Canada, delivered a decisive response for head coach John Mitchell with her influential attacking display. England's front-row pack produced a stronger second-half showing, and physical contributions from players such as Maud Muir — including powerful carries and big tackles — helped shift momentum in England's favour.
England opened the scoring inside five minutes, Moloney-MacDonald finishing acrobatically and adding a second soon after, but the first half was marred by handling errors that limited England's scoring opportunities. Hope Rogers replied for the USA with a try that left her four points shy of the American women's all-time points record, and England captain Meg Jones added a score before the interval to give England a 17-7 half-time lead.
Moloney-MacDonald secured further tries after the break to extend England's advantage. Alev Kelter produced a huge hit on Jones that generated momentum for the USA's world No 6 side, yet England responded when Mia Venner crossed for a try; the Gloucester-Hartpury wing has impressed across two starts in this away leg of the WXV Global Series.
Matchday details included a nominal 25,000-capacity Sports Illustrated Stadium, although the official attendance figure was not announced and many stands appeared sparsely populated for the 5pm local kick-off. The game saw the replacement hooker Bryony Field, Maddie Feaunati and Sadia Kabeya play roles that helped convert a win into a heavier victory, while USA co-captain Georgie Perris-Redding was forced off with an injury.
This fixture was both teams' final match of the calendar year; the USA must wait until the 2027 Pacific Four tournament for a chance to respond, and England begin a new unbeaten run they will aim to build on when they next compete in the Women's Six Nations, starting in April.