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In the words of captain George Williams, England were given a harsh "sobering lesson" as Australia secured the coveted Ashes trophy.

The Kangaroos' 14-4 victory at the Merseyside venue on Saturday gave them a commanding series edge, making next week's Headingley encounter a meaningless fixture.

The England team had entered the series holding aspirations of sending Australia to their maiden Ashes setback since over five decades ago.

Over the last 24 months, they had secured a 3-0 series win over Tonga and a success over Samoa. But as the historic rivalry resumed after a two-decade hiatus, England were unable to take the next step against the top-ranked team.

"No excuses from us. We've had enough training periods to execute properly on the pitch, and it's clear we've achieved that," Williams stated.

"Full marks to the Kangaroos. They were good in defense. But there's loads to improve. We're probably not as good as we believed we were entering this series.

"So it's a good reality check for us, and we have plenty to improve on."

The Kangaroos 'Show Up and Prove Clinical'

Having been comprehensively defeated in an error-strewn display at the national stadium, Wane side's were markedly enhanced on the weekend back in the core regions of the North.

In a rousing first half, the home side caused turnovers from the Kangaroos and had dominant territory and ball control, but unfortunately did not convert opportunities on the points tally.

Significantly, England have now managed just a single touchdown over 160 minutes, with St Helens hooker Daryl Clark powering through late on in the setback in the capital.

In contrast, the Kangaroos have accumulated six so far - and when mistakes began to appear in the hosts' play just after the interval, it was a case of inevitability, they were going to be severely punished.

Initially the playmaker crossed, and then so too did Hudson Young. From being level at 4-4, the home side were down by double digits.

"Proud for the bulk of the game. In my view for most of the match we were good," said Wane.

"The lapse for a brief period after half-time cost us greatly. Munster's try was easy and should never happen in a international fixture.

"We're deeply disappointed. Extremely pleased the players had a fight but very frustrated with that second-half lapse, which cost us significantly."

Although the next World Cup in Australia and Papua New Guinea is just under next year, England's immediate focus will be on trying to regain respect, preventing a clean sweep and eradicating the issues that frustrated Wane.

"I wanted to see more thrown at the opposition. My aim was us to build pressure in the game - we fell short last week," added the 61-year-old.

"We did this week. It's just a lack of precision in our attack where we could have put them under increased strain. It's essential to stop each of [tries] more effectively.

"Fair play to Australia - that is no detriment to them. They perform and are merciless when they get a chance, and we failed to be, but in defense we must do better.

"They will be determined to win all three Tests and we need to be just as focused to make it a competitive series. I've said that to the squad. It has to be our primary goal. It will be a tough week but whoever strives for it the most will get the win next week."

Intensity Must to Elevate in Domestic Competition

England have played a similar number of Test matches to the Kangaroos since the previous global tournament in 2022.

However Wane thinks that the caliber of the NRL - and quality of the domestic rivalry matches between NSW and QLD - provide a much better preparation for competing at the highest level of the global stage than what is on offer in the Europe.

The England coach noted that the hectic Super League fixture schedule left no time for him to work with his players during the campaign, which will only raise further questions around how England can close the divide to the Kangaroos before travelling to Oceania in 2026.

"They play a large number of Test matches in their league," he stated.

"We have ten to fifteen a year. We need demanding games to boost the domestic league and boost our chances of winning these sorts of games.

"I couldn't even practice with the squad. We never got on the field in the season and despite having the total cooperation of everyone in Super League.

"I have also been in the boots of the club managers that need to win games. The competition is that congested. It's a pity but it's not the cause we were defeated today."