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As stated by skipper George Williams, England were given a brutal "wake-up call" as Australia clinched the coveted Ashes trophy.

The Kangaroos' decisive 14-4 win at Everton's Hill Dickinson Stadium on the weekend gave them a commanding series edge, making next week's sold-out third Test a meaningless fixture.

The national squad had entered the series holding aspirations of inflicting the Kangaroos to their maiden Ashes setback since the 1970s.

Over the last 24 months, they had enjoyed a dominant victory over Tonga and a 2-0 triumph over the Samoan team. But as the Rugby League Ashes resumed after a long break, the English were failed to make the leap against the reigning title holders.

"No excuses from us. We've had enough preparations to execute properly on the field, and I don't think we've achieved that," Williams told.

"Australia deserve praise. They were strong in defense. But there's plenty to work on. It seems not as good as we thought we were going into this series.

"This serves as a good wake-up call for us, and [there is] loads to enhance."

The Kangaroos 'Turn Up and Prove Merciless'

After being heavily outplayed in an error-strewn display at the national stadium, Wane side's were significantly better on Saturday back in the traditional strongholds of the North.

In a rousing first half, the home side elicited errors from the Australians and had superior positioning and ball control, but importantly did not convert opportunities on the scoreboard.

Notably, the English team have now managed just a single touchdown over two full matches, with St Helens hooker the forward powering through late on in the defeat in London.

On the other hand, the Kangaroos have accumulated six so far - and when mistakes began to creep into the hosts' play just after the interval, it was a case of inevitability, they were going to be severely punished.

Initially Cameron Munster crossed, and then so too did Hudson Young. From being level at 4-4, the home side were trailing by 10.

"Proud for the majority of the game. I thought for 70 minutes we were solid," said Wane.

"The switch off for a brief period after the break damaged us immensely. The first try was soft and should not be scored in a international fixture.

"The team is devastated. So proud the players had a go but so disappointed with that second-half lapse, which hurt us dearly."

Although the upcoming global tournament in Oceania is just under next year, the team's primary concern will be on trying to regain respect, avoiding a clean sweep and eliminating the errors that annoyed the coach.

"I hoped to see additional intensity thrown at the opposition. I wanted us to maintain momentum in the game - we failed to deliver last week," added the 61-year-old.

"We did this week. The issue is a bit of detail in our attack where we could have put them under more pressure. It's essential to stop each of [tries] better.

"Fair play to Australia - that is not a criticism to them. They perform and are clinical when they get a chance, and we failed to be, but in defense we must do better.

"The Australians will be determined to win all three Tests and we need to be equally determined to make it a competitive series. I've said that to the squad. It has to be our main aim. It will be a tough week but whoever desires it the greatest will emerge victorious next week."

Intensity Needs to Increase in Super League

The English side have played a comparable number of international fixtures to the Kangaroos since the last World Cup in 2022.

Yet the coach argues that the quality of the Australian league - and quality of the State of Origin matches between New South Wales and Queensland - offer a much better foundation for performing at the top of the global stage than what is on offer in the UK.

Wane added that the hectic Super League fixture list left no time for him to train his squad during the season, which will only raise more issues around how the national team can bridge the gap to the Kangaroos before heading to Oceania in the next World Cup.

"The Australians participate in a lot of internationals in their league," he added.

"We play ten to fifteen a year. We need really intense games to enhance the domestic league and increase our chances of succeeding in these high-stakes fixtures.

"It was impossible to even practice with the players. We never got on the field in the campaign and despite having the total cooperation of all clubs in the domestic competition.

"I have also been in the position of the club managers that must to win games. The competition is that tight. It's a pity but that's not the reason we got beaten today."