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According to leader George Williams, England were handed a harsh "reality check" as Australia secured the prestigious series.

Australia's decisive 14-4 win at the Merseyside venue on the weekend gave them a unassailable 2-0 advantage, making the upcoming sold-out third Test a academic contest.

Shaun Wane's side had come into the series holding aspirations of sending the Kangaroos to their initial series loss since over five decades ago.

Recently, they had secured a clean sweep over the Tongan side and a 2-0 triumph over the Samoan team. But as the Rugby League Ashes returned after a two-decade hiatus, England were failed to take the next step against the world champions.

"We take full responsibility. We've had enough sessions to perform correctly on the pitch, and it's clear we've managed that," Williams stated.

"Australia deserve praise. They proved good defensively. But we've got loads to work on. It seems not as strong as we thought we were going into this series.

"This serves as a valuable lesson for us, and [there is] loads to enhance."

Australia 'Turn Up and Prove Clinical'

Having been comprehensively defeated in an mistake-ridden performance at the national stadium, England's were much improved on Saturday back in the rugby league heartlands of England's north.

In a rousing opening period, England elicited errors from the Kangaroos and had superior positioning and ball control, but crucially did not capitalize on the scoreboard.

Notably, the English team have now managed just one score over the series so far, with St Helens hooker the forward powering through late on in the loss in London.

Conversely, Australia have scored six across the series - and when mistakes began to affect the hosts' play just after the half-time, it was a case of certainty, they were going to be made to pay.

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

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

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

"We're deeply disappointed. Extremely pleased the players had a go but so disappointed with that post-interval, which cost us significantly."

Although the next World Cup in Australia and Papua New Guinea is just under 12 months away, England's immediate focus will be on attempting to regain respect, avoiding a 3-0 sweep and addressing the mistakes that annoyed Wane.

"I hoped to see greater effort thrown at the opposition. My aim was 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 minor refinements in our offensive play where we could have put them under increased strain. It's essential to stop each of [tries] with greater resolve.

"Credit to Australia - that is no detriment to them. They turn up and are clinical when they seize opportunities, and we weren't, but in defense we can and should do better.

"They will be determined to win the series whitewash and we need to be equally determined to make it 2-1. I've told that to the players. This must become our main aim. It will be a challenging week but the side that wants it the most will emerge victorious next week."

Intensity Needs to Elevate in Super League

England have participated in a comparable number of Test matches to the Kangaroos since the last World Cup in 2022.

However Wane thinks that the quality of the NRL - and quality of the State of Origin matches between New South Wales and Queensland - deliver a superior grounding for performing at the top of the global stage than what is available in the UK.

Wane commented that the packed domestic league fixture schedule left no time for him to coach his team during the campaign, which will only raise further questions around how the national team can narrow the difference to Australia before heading to the Southern Hemisphere in the next World Cup.

"They play a large number of internationals in their competition," Wane added.

"England play 10-15 a year. We need demanding games to boost the competition and increase our chances of winning these types of matches.

"I couldn't even train with the players. We never trained together in the season and I had the full backing of all clubs in Super League.

"I have also been in the position of the head coaches that must to win games. The competition is that congested. It's a pity but that's not the cause we were defeated today."