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In the words of skipper George Williams, the national team were delivered a harsh "wake-up call" as Australia secured the Rugby League Ashes.

Australia's decisive 14-4 win at the stadium in Liverpool on the weekend gave them a commanding series edge, making the upcoming Headingley encounter a dead rubber.

The England team had entered the series holding aspirations of inflicting the Kangaroos to their initial series loss since 1970.

In the past two years, they had secured 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 long break, England were unable to take the next step against the top-ranked team.

"We take full responsibility. There were enough preparations to perform correctly on the pitch, and I don't think we've quite done that," Williams commented.

"Australia deserve praise. They proved strong in defense. But there's a lot to improve. It seems not as prepared as we thought we were entering this series.

"This serves as a necessary reality check for us, and [there is] loads to develop."

Australia 'Turn Up and Prove Ruthless'

Having been comprehensively defeated in an error-strewn display at the national stadium, Wane side's were significantly better on Saturday back in the rugby league heartlands of England's north.

In an inspiring first half, England forced mistakes from the Kangaroos and had all the field position and possession, but crucially did not capitalize on the scoreboard.

Tellingly, the English team have now scored just one try over 160 minutes, with St Helens hooker Daryl Clark barging over late on in the defeat in the capital.

Conversely, the Kangaroos have scored half a dozen in two games - and when mistakes began to appear in the England's play just after the interval, it was a case of when, not if, they were going to be heavily penalized.

Initially Cameron Munster scored, and then so too did Hudson Young. From being level at four-all, the home side were down by double digits.

"Proud for the bulk of the game. I thought for 70 minutes we were competitive," said the coach.

"The drop in intensity for 10 minutes after the break damaged us immensely. The first try was easy and should not be scored in a international fixture.

"We're deeply disappointed. Extremely pleased the players had a dig but so disappointed with that second-half lapse, which cost us dearly."

While the upcoming global tournament in Oceania is just under a year from now, England's short-term goal will be on trying to regain respect, avoiding a 3-0 sweep and addressing the errors that frustrated Wane.

"I wanted to see more directed toward the opposition. My aim was us to build pressure in the game - we didn't do that last week," added the 61-year-old.

"We managed this week. The issue is a minor refinements in our offensive play where we could have put them under increased strain. We need to defend both [tries] more effectively.

"Fair play to Australia - that is not a criticism to them. They turn up and are ruthless when they get a chance, and we weren't, but in defense we can and should do improve.

"The Australians will be obsessed to win all three Tests and we need to be just as focused to make it 2-1. I've said that to the squad. It has to be our obsession. It will be a difficult week but whoever wants it the greatest will get the win next week."

Competitive Edge Must to Improve in Domestic Competition

England have played a comparable number of international fixtures to Australia since the last World Cup in 2022.

Yet the coach believes that the quality of the NRL - and level of the State of Origin matches between New South Wales and QLD - deliver a superior foundation for competing at the top of the international game than what is available in the northern hemisphere.

The England coach added that the packed domestic league calendar left little opportunity for him to work with his team during the season, which will only raise additional concerns around how the national team can narrow the difference to Australia before travelling to the Southern Hemisphere in the next World Cup.

"They play a large number of Test matches in their competition," Wane remarked.

"We have ten to fifteen a year. We need highly competitive games to improve the domestic league and improve our prospects of winning these high-stakes fixtures.

"It was impossible to even practice with the players. There was no chance to trained together in the campaign and despite having the full backing of all clubs in Super League.

"I understand in the shoes of the club managers that must to win games. The competition is that tight. It's a pity but it's not the cause we got beaten today."