Australia edge England in pulsating Test to clinch Ashes

Match 2 of 3 of the Rugby League Ashes

England (4) 4

Goals: Smith (2)

Australia (4) 14

The wait is getting longer. Another gallant English failure. Australia’s influence continued.

The Kangaroos won their 14th series win, an Ashes run that started 52 years ago, with a 14-4 victory in the second Test on Saturday.

In order to complete a 3-0 series whitewash, Australia, like in 2003, attempt to play a sold-out third Test at Headingley in Leeds next week as a dead rubber.

However, this performance was more appropriate for a Shaun Wane side after being brutally beaten by Kevin Walters’ team at Wembley a week ago.

After failing to “show up” for the first Test, the England head coach had promised his team would provide a better account of themselves, and they came out on top.

After Nathan Cleary and Harry Smith exchanged penalties, they enjoyed the better of the first period, but the scoreboard displayed four points each instead of their territorial dominance.

England’s issue was that they couldn’t break through an Australian defence, which was as good as it could get.

There were some promising moments, with Morgan Knowles knocking on the ball before grounding it under the sticks before Dom Young was fingernail-struck from a Herbie Farnworth grubber kick to start the corner.

However, the tourists blew the game away in four second-half minutes.

Cameron Munster twisted away from a George Williams tackle to score on the next Australia set, and a shocking error was made on the left of England.

And with the match clearly in full swing, Australia received yet another error.

Canberra Raiders second row Hudson Young was able to collect the loose ball when Cleary’s booming kick ricocheted out of Tom Johnstone’s hands.

With just three minutes left in the game, a major conflict between a number of players caused the frenetic opening, with Tino Fa’asuamaleaui of England and Tino Fa’asuamaleaui of Australia receiving punishment for their actions.

And that set the tone for a more assertive and aggressive England display than at Wembley.

Some of the scruffiness in England’s sets was exacerbated by Smith’s inclusion due to his notable game management skills, and debutant AJ Brimson justified his inclusion at full-back.

Despite England’s excellent work, they were unable to reclaim the win and, even when Australia’s full-back Reece Walsh was sin-binned in the second half, frustratingly for Wane and his team on the sidelines, they were unable to find a way back into the game.

England: AJ Brimson, Dom Young, Herbie Farnworth, Jake Wardle, Tom Johnstone, George Williams (capt), Harry Smith, Mike McMeeken, Jez Litten, Matty Lees, Kai Pearce-Paul, Kallum Watkins, Morgan Knowles, and Dom Young.

Mikey Lewis, Alex Walmsley, Morgan Smithies, and Mikolaj Oledzki make changes.

Walsh, Nawaqanitawase, Staggs, Shibasaki, Addo-Carr, Munster, Cleary, Collins, Grant, Fa’asuamaleaui, Crichton, Young, Carrigan, and Walsh are Australia’s speakers.