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As stated by captain George Williams, England were given a stark "sobering lesson" as the Kangaroos clinched the Rugby League Ashes.

The Kangaroos' decisive 14-4 win at the stadium in Liverpool on Saturday gave them a unassailable 2-0 advantage, making the upcoming final match in Leeds a academic contest.

The England team had entered the series harbouring hopes of inflicting Australia to their initial series loss since the 1970s.

Recently, they had achieved a 3-0 series win over the Tongan side and a 2-0 triumph over the Samoan team. But as the historic rivalry resumed after a two-decade hiatus, England were failed to advance further against the top-ranked team.

"We take full responsibility. There were enough training periods to get it right on the pitch, and I don't think we've quite done that," the captain told.

"Full marks to the Kangaroos. They were strong in defense. But we've got a lot to work on. We're probably not as prepared as we thought we were entering this series.

"This serves as a valuable reality check for us, and [there is] loads to improve on."

Australia 'Arrive and Prove Ruthless'

After being soundly beaten in an mistake-ridden performance at Wembley, England's were significantly better on Saturday back in the rugby league heartlands of the North.

In a rousing opening period, England elicited errors from the Kangaroos and had all the field position and possession, but crucially did not make it count on the scoreboard.

Significantly, England have now scored just a single touchdown over 160 minutes, with St Helens hooker the forward barging over late on in the defeat in the capital.

In contrast, the Kangaroos have scored half a dozen in two games - and when blunders began to affect the hosts' play just after the half-time, it was a case of inevitability, they were going to be severely punished.

Initially the playmaker scored, and then so too did Hudson Young. From being tied at 4-4, England were trailing by 10.

"Satisfied for the bulk of the game. I thought for most of the match we were solid," said the coach.

"The switch off for a brief period after half-time hurt us severely. The first try was avoidable and should not be scored in a top-level game.

"We're heartbroken. So proud the squad had a dig but very frustrated with that after half-time, which hurt us dearly."

While the upcoming global tournament in Australia and Papua New Guinea is just under a year from now, England's primary concern will be on attempting to regain respect, avoiding a clean sweep and eradicating the issues that irritated Wane.

"I wanted to see additional intensity directed toward Australia. I wanted us to maintain momentum in the game - we failed to deliver last week," added the 61-year-old.

"We managed this week. The issue is a lack of precision in our offensive play where we could have put them under more pressure. It's essential to defend both [tries] more effectively.

"Fair play to the Kangaroos - that is no slight to them. They arrive and are merciless when they get a chance, and we weren't, but defensively we must do improve.

"The Australians will be focused to win 3-0 and we need to be just as focused to make it 2-1. I've said that to the squad. This must become our primary goal. It will be a challenging week but the side that desires it the greatest will emerge victorious next week."

Competitive Edge Needs to Increase in Super League

The English side have played a similar number of Test matches to Australia since the last World Cup in recent years.

However Wane thinks that the strength of the Australian league - and quality of the domestic rivalry matches between NSW and Queensland - provide a more effective foundation for performing at the highest level of the international game than what is available in the UK.

Wane noted that the hectic Super League fixture list left no time for him to work with his players during the season, which will only pose further questions around how the national team can close the divide to Australia before travelling to Oceania in 2026.

"The Australians play a lot of internationals in their competition," he remarked.

"We have 10-15 a year. We need highly competitive games to enhance the domestic league and improve our chances of winning these types of matches.

"I couldn't even train with the squad. There was no chance to trained together in the season and despite having the complete support of everyone in Super League.

"I understand in the boots of the club managers that must to win games. The competition is that tight. It's unfortunate but it's not the reason we were defeated today."