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The home side's attacking frailties were exposed and punished by a ruthless Australian side as the visitors swept to a surprisingly comfortable win in the opening Test of the Ashes.

The England coach's team had talked at length about their motivation going into the opening series for over two decades, and they were certainly not short on endeavour at Wembley. Yet, in the key instances, it was the world champions who showed more composure in front of a historic crowd for an series match in the UK of more than 60,000.

Brilliant Display from Walsh

Led by an exceptional display in attack and defence from Brisbane Broncos’ Reece Walsh, the Kangaroos were deserving and convincing winners in the first match of the three-game contest, meaning the hosts must win at Goodison Park next Saturday to keep alive their aspirations of a first Ashes win since 1970.

They will have to be much better with the possession if they are to achieve that. On multiple occasions in the opening period, the hosts found themselves in advantageous situations but they were failed to score for any points. That was in no small part thanks to Reece Walsh, who executed two wonderful interceptions.

Crucial Plays of the Match

The initial came as Farnworth seemed destined to put Young in for what would have been the opening try, then Walsh denied Lewis as half-time approached. By then, the Kangaroos had gone ahead as Reece Walsh himself finished a excellent play.

Nathan Cleary added the extras before kicking a penalty on the stroke of the interval to establish a two-score lead. It was a pivotal moment, as was the try for Angus Crichton shortly after the restart which made it fourteen to nil in favour of the visitors. The hosts now had to cross the line thrice and that seemed to halt their momentum.

If there were any doubt about the winners, they were decisively settled with a quarter-hour to go. Munster's line break was backed up by Angus Crichton, who broke through Jack Welsby for Australia’s third try.

That made it twenty to zero and there was added disappointment in the final minutes as Walsh finished another scintillating attack, taking advantage of a tired and visibly shot England defense for his second try.

Match Result and Looking Ahead

By then, local supporters had begun to filter out and many missed Clark's consolation, which at least avoided England being held to nil. However, there are plenty of questions for the coach to address going into what is now a must-win Test next Saturday.

• England: Full team lineup.
• Substitutes: Litten, Walmsley, Trout, McMeeken.
• Tries: Daryl Clark.
• Conversion: Lewis.

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