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According to leader the England captain, the national team were handed a harsh "sobering lesson" as Australia secured the coveted Ashes trophy.

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

Shaun Wane's side had entered the series dreaming of inflicting the Kangaroos to their maiden Ashes setback since 1970.

Recently, they had achieved a clean sweep over the Tongan side and a success over the Samoan team. But as the prestigious competition returned after a long break, England were unable to take the next step against the top-ranked team.

"No excuses from us. There were enough sessions to perform correctly on the pitch, and it's clear we've achieved that," the captain told.

"Credit to Australia. They proved good defensively. But there's plenty to address. We're probably not as strong as we thought we were entering this series.

"This serves as a necessary lesson for us, and we have plenty to develop."

Australia 'Turn Up and Prove Clinical'

Having been heavily outplayed in an error-strewn display at the national stadium, Wane side's were significantly better on the weekend back in the core regions of England's north.

In a rousing opening period, 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, England have now managed just one score over the series so far, with St Helens hooker the forward barging over late on in the defeat in the capital.

On the other hand, Australia have racked up half a dozen across the series - and when blunders began to affect the hosts' play just after the interval, it was a case of when, not if, they were going to be made to pay.

Initially Cameron Munster scored, and then so too did the forward. From being level at four-all, England were 10 points adrift.

"Proud for the bulk of the game. In my view for 70 minutes we were solid," said Wane.

"The switch off for 10 minutes after the break damaged us severely. Munster's try was easy and should not be scored in a international fixture.

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

Although the next World Cup in the Southern Hemisphere is just under next year, England's primary concern will be on trying to restore some pride, avoiding a series whitewash and eliminating the errors that frustrated the coach.

"I hoped to see additional intensity thrown at the opposition. I wanted us to apply sustained attack in the game - we fell short last week," added the veteran coach.

"We did this week. The issue is a bit of detail in our attack where we could have put them under more pressure. We need to defend both [tries] with greater resolve.

"Credit to Australia - that is no detriment to them. They arrive and are ruthless when they get a chance, and we failed to be, but defensively we must do improve.

"The Australians will be obsessed to win 3-0 and we need to be just as focused to make it a competitive series. I've told that to the players. This must become our main aim. It will be a tough week but the side that desires it the most will get the win next week."

Intensity Must to Increase in Domestic Competition

England have played a comparable number of international fixtures to the Kangaroos since the last World Cup in recent years.

However the coach believes that the caliber of the NRL - and standard of the domestic rivalry matches between NSW and QLD - offer a much better preparation for competing at the top of the global stage than what is available in the Europe.

Wane commented that the packed Super League calendar left no time for him to coach his team during the season, which will only raise additional concerns around how England can close the divide to Australia before heading to Oceania in the next World Cup.

"They participate in a large number of Test matches in their competition," Wane added.

"England have 10-15 a year. It's crucial highly competitive games to boost the competition and improve our prospects of winning these high-stakes fixtures.

"It was impossible to even train with the players. There was no chance to trained together in the campaign and despite having the complete support of all clubs in the domestic competition.

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