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England's offensive weaknesses were exposed and punished by a clinical Australia as the tourists secured a surprisingly comfortable victory in the opening Test of the rugby league Ashes series.

The England coach's side had talked at length about their motivation going into the first Ashes for over two decades, and they were certainly not short on endeavour at the famous stadium. However, 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 over sixty thousand spectators.

Brilliant Performance from Reece Walsh

Guided by an outstanding display in attack and defence from club star Walsh, Australia were deserving and convincing victors in the first match of the three-match series, meaning England must win at Everton’s Hill Dickinson Stadium next Saturday to keep alive their aspirations of a series victory since the 1970s.

England will have to be much better with the ball if they are to accomplish that goal. On multiple occasions in the opening period, the hosts found themselves in advantageous situations but they were failed to score for any tries. That was in no small part thanks to Reece Walsh, who pulled off two wonderful turnovers.

Crucial Plays of the Match

The initial came as Herbie Farnworth seemed certain to put Young in for what would have been the first score, then the fullback denied Lewis as half-time neared. By then, the Kangaroos had gone ahead as Reece Walsh himself finished a excellent play.

Nathan Cleary added the extras before adding a penalty on the brink of the interval to open up a eight-point advantage. It was a significant moment, as was the try for Angus Crichton soon after the restart which made it fourteen to nil in favor of the visitors. The hosts now had to cross the line thrice and that seemed to stifle their momentum.

If there were any doubt about the winners, they were decisively settled with a quarter-hour to go. Cameron Munster’s half-break was supported by Angus Crichton, who pushed past Welsby for the Kangaroos' third score.

That made it 20-0 and there was further humiliation in the closing stages as Reece Walsh completed another scintillating move, taking advantage of a weary and visibly shot England defensive line for his second.

Final Score and Looking Ahead

By then, local supporters had begun to filter out and many did not see Clark's late try, which at least prevented the home side being held to nil. Nonetheless, there are many issues for the coach to address going into what is now a do-or-die Test next weekend.

• Home Side: Welsby; Young, Farnworth, Wardle, Johnstone; Williams, Lewis; Havard, Clark, Lees, Bateman, Pearce-Paul, Knowles.
• Substitutes: Litten, Walmsley, Trout, McMeeken.
• Tries: Daryl Clark.
• Goal: Mikey Lewis.

• Visitors: Starting lineup.
• Interchange: Reserves.
• Tries: Walsh 2, Crichton 2.
• Goals: Nathan Cleary (five).