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According to leader the England captain, the national team were handed a stark "reality check" as the Kangaroos clinched the prestigious series.

Australia's 14-4 victory at the Merseyside venue on Saturday gave them a 2-0 series lead, making next week's final match in Leeds a meaningless fixture.

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

In the past two years, they had secured a dominant victory over Tonga and a series win over Samoa. But as the prestigious competition resumed after a 22-year absence, England were unable to make the leap against the top-ranked team.

"We take full responsibility. We've had enough sessions to perform correctly on the field, and I don't think we've managed that," the captain stated.

"Credit to Australia. They proved good in defense. But there's a lot to improve. It seems not as prepared as we expected we were entering this series.

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

The Kangaroos 'Show Up and Are Clinical'

Having been heavily outplayed in an error-strewn display at the national stadium, Wane side's were markedly enhanced on Saturday back in the traditional strongholds of England's north.

In a rousing first half, England caused turnovers from the Kangaroos and had all the field position and possession, but crucially did not convert opportunities on the points tally.

Notably, the English team have now scored just one score over 160 minutes, with St Helens hooker Daryl Clark scoring late on in the setback in the capital.

On the other hand, Australia have racked up six so far - and when mistakes began to creep into the England's play just after the interval, it was a case of inevitability, they were going to be made to pay.

Initially the playmaker scored, and then so too did Hudson Young. From being tied at 4-4, the home side were down by double digits.

"Satisfied for the majority of the game. In my view for most of the match we were solid," said the coach.

"The switch off for 10 minutes after the break damaged us immensely. Munster's try was soft and should not be scored in a top-level game.

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

Although the upcoming global tournament in the Southern Hemisphere is just under next year, the team's short-term goal will be on trying to regain respect, preventing a series whitewash and eliminating the errors that irritated the coach.

"I wanted to see greater effort thrown at the opposition. I wanted us to build pressure in the game - we fell short last week," added the veteran coach.

"We did this week. It's just a minor refinements in our attack where we could have put them under increased strain. We need to defend both [tries] with greater resolve.

"Fair play to Australia - that is no detriment to them. They arrive and are merciless when they capitalize, and we weren't, but in defense we can and should do improve.

"The Australians will be focused to win 3-0 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 main aim. It will be a challenging week but whoever strives for it the greatest will secure victory next week."

Competitive Edge Must to Increase in Super League

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

However Wane argues that the caliber of the NRL - and level of the State of Origin matches between New South Wales and QLD - provide a more effective preparation for performing at the highest level of the international game than what is available in the UK.

Wane noted that the congested domestic league fixture schedule allowed no time for him to train his players during the campaign, which will only pose further questions around how England can close the divide to the Kangaroos before heading to the Southern Hemisphere in 2026.

"They participate in a lot of Test matches in their league," Wane added.

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

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

"I have also been in the shoes of the club managers that must to win games. The league is that tight. It's a pity but that's not the reason we were defeated today."