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England's attacking frailties were exposed and punished by a ruthless Australia as the visitors secured a worryingly straightforward win in the first match of the rugby league Ashes series.

Shaun Wane’s side had talked at length about their drive going into the first Ashes for 22 years, and they were certainly not short on effort at Wembley. Yet, in the key instances, it was the world champions who showed more composure in front of a record attendance for an series match in the United Kingdom of more than 60,000.

Brilliant Performance from Walsh

Led by an outstanding showing in offense and defense from club star Reece Walsh, Australia were deserving and convincing winners in the opening Test of the three-game contest, meaning England must triumph at Goodison Park next Saturday to sustain their aspirations of a series victory since 1970.

England will have to be significantly improved with the possession if they are to accomplish that goal. On several instances in the opening period, the hosts found themselves in advantageous situations but they were failed to score for any points. That was in no small part thanks to Reece Walsh, who executed two superb turnovers.

Key Moments of the Match

The first came as Farnworth seemed certain to put Young in for what would have been the first score, then Walsh stopped Lewis as the break approached. By then, the Kangaroos had gone ahead as Reece Walsh himself completed a excellent move.

Cleary added the extras before kicking a two-pointer on the stroke of the interval to open up a eight-point lead. It was a pivotal point, as was the try for Crichton soon after the resumption which made it fourteen to nil in favour of the visitors. The hosts now had to score three times and that seemed to halt their momentum.

Should there have been uncertainty about the winners, they were decisively settled with 15 minutes to go. Cameron Munster’s half-break was backed up by Angus Crichton, who pushed past Welsby for the Kangaroos' third score.

That made it 20-0 and there was added disappointment in the final minutes as Reece Walsh completed another scintillating move, exploiting a weary and visibly shot English defense for his second.

Final Score and Outlook

By then, home fans had begun to leave early and many did not see Clark's late try, which at least avoided England finishing scoreless. However, there are many issues for the coach to answer going into what is now a do-or-die match next weekend.

• Home Side: Welsby; Young, Farnworth, Wardle, Johnstone; Williams, Lewis; Havard, Clark, Lees, Bateman, Pearce-Paul, Knowles.
• Substitutes: Bench players.
• Try: Clark.
• Goal: Lewis.

• Visitors: Starting lineup.
• Interchange: Reserves.
• Tries: Reece Walsh (two), Angus Crichton (two).
• Goals: Nathan Cleary (five).