England might have scored almost 70 points in thrashing the United States in the Women's Rugby World Cup opener, but coach John Mitchell warned there was much more to come from his top-ranked team. Host nation England's women lived up to their top billing in an 11-try performance, scoring seven of them after the break to win 69-7 over the US in front of a record crowd at Sunderland's Stadium of Light. They went over for their first try inside the opening 10 minutes and were comfortably 28-7 ahead at the break, but Mitchell said he asked for more. "We challenged them around lifting the intensity in the second half, and I thought we lifted it well," he told reporters. The Americans did not get close to the England try line after the break as wave after wave of home attack emphasised why they are the team to beat at the tournament. Their forward play was powerful, and their backs showed plenty of pace and skill. "There is a common saying in rugby that a 'forward decides who's going to win the match, and the backs decide by how much,' and I think the forwards definitely took that approach today in their stride," said winger Abby Dowd, who scored one of the 11 tries. "The key to a successful team is a platform, and the forwards provided us with that," she added. Ominously, former All Blacks coach Mitchell warned: "There is so much growth to come. We will get better. The tournament will get harder, but we have so much left in us." The margin of victory, plus the standard of play, will have thrilled the 42,723-strong crowd, which surpassed the previous record of 42,579 at the last World Cup final in Auckland, where England last lost a game. "The girls got to experience a brilliant home crowd," said Mitchell. "It's only the first game. We have set a standard, but also the fans have set a standard, and that is something that we are going to rise to and get bigger and better," added fullback Ellie Kildunne, who scored two tries and won the best player award. "It's a really good start, and it is just the start," she said.