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England's attacking frailties were exposed and punished by a clinical Australia as the visitors swept to a surprisingly comfortable win in the first match of the Ashes.

The England coach's team had spoken effusively about their motivation going into the first Ashes for over two decades, and they were definitely full of endeavour at the famous stadium. However, in the key instances, it was the reigning title holders who showed more calmness in front of a historic crowd for an series match in the UK of more than 60,000.

Outstanding Performance from Walsh

Guided by an outstanding display in offense and defense from Brisbane Broncos’ Reece Walsh, the Kangaroos were deserving and convincing victors in the first match of the three-match series, meaning England must triumph at Goodison Park next Saturday to keep alive their aspirations of a first Ashes win since 1970.

England will have to be significantly improved with the ball if they are to achieve that. On several instances in the opening period, the home team found themselves in advantageous situations but they were failed to score for any tries. That was in large measure thanks to Reece Walsh, who executed two wonderful turnovers.

Key Moments of the Game

The initial came as Herbie Farnworth seemed destined to put Young in for what would have been the first score, then the fullback stopped Mikey Lewis as the break neared. By then, the Australians had taken the lead as Reece Walsh himself completed a excellent play.

Cleary converted before adding a penalty on the brink of the interval to open up a two-score advantage. It was a pivotal moment, as was the try for Crichton shortly after the resumption which made it 14-0 in favour of the visitors. England now had to cross the line thrice and that seemed to stifle their momentum.

Should there have been uncertainty about the victors, they were firmly put to bed with a quarter-hour to go. Cameron Munster’s line break was supported by Crichton, who pushed past Welsby for Australia’s third try.

That made it twenty to zero and there was further humiliation in the closing stages as Walsh finished another breathtaking move, exploiting a weary and clearly exhausted England defense for his second.

Final Score and Outlook

By then, home fans had begun to leave early and many missed Daryl Clark’s late try, which at least avoided England 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.
• Substitutes: Bench players.
• Tries: Clark.
• Conversion: Mikey Lewis.

• Australia: Starting lineup.
• Interchange: Reserves.
• Tries: Reece Walsh (two), Angus Crichton (two).
• Goals: Cleary 5.