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The home side's attacking frailties were laid bare and capitalized on by a ruthless Australia as the tourists secured a surprisingly comfortable win in the opening Test of the Ashes.

The England coach's team had spoken effusively about their drive going into the first Ashes for over two decades, and they were certainly not short on endeavour at Wembley. However, in the key instances, it was the world champions who displayed more composure in front of a historic crowd for an series match in the United Kingdom of over sixty thousand spectators.

Outstanding Performance from Walsh

Led by an outstanding display in attack and defence from club star Walsh, the Kangaroos were deserving and convincing winners in the first match of the three-game contest, meaning England must win at Goodison Park next weekend to sustain their hopes of a first Ashes win since 1970.

England will have to be much better with the possession if they are to achieve that. On multiple occasions in the opening period, the home team found themselves in promising positions but they were failed to score for any tries. That was in large measure thanks to Walsh, who executed two wonderful turnovers.

Crucial Plays of the Game

The initial occurred as Farnworth seemed certain to put Dom Young in for what would have been the first score, then Walsh denied Mikey Lewis as the break approached. By then, the Kangaroos had gone ahead as Walsh himself finished a excellent play.

Cleary added the extras before adding a penalty on the stroke of the interval to open up a eight-point advantage. It was a pivotal moment, as was the score for Crichton soon after the restart which made it fourteen to nil in favor of the visitors. England now had to score three times and that seemed to stifle their drive.

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

That made it 20-0 and there was further humiliation in the closing stages as Walsh finished another breathtaking move, exploiting a tired and clearly exhausted England defensive line for his second try.

Final Score and Outlook

By then, home fans had begun to leave early and many missed Clark's late try, which at least prevented the home side finishing scoreless. However, there are many issues for the coach to address going into what is now a do-or-die match next Saturday.

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

• Visitors: Walsh; Nawaqanitawase, Staggs, Shibasaki, Addo-Carr; Munster, Cleary; Carrigan, Grant, Fa’asuamaleaui, Crichton, Young, Yeo.
• Interchange: Dearden, Collins, Cotter, Koloamatangi.
• Scores: Reece Walsh (two), Angus Crichton (two).
• Goals: Nathan Cleary (five).