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In the words of skipper the England captain, England were delivered a stark "wake-up call" as Australia won the Rugby League Ashes.

The Kangaroos' decisive 14-4 win at the Merseyside venue on Saturday gave them a 2-0 series lead, making next week's Headingley encounter a academic contest.

The national squad had come into the series harbouring hopes of inflicting Australia to their maiden Ashes setback since over five decades ago.

Over the last 24 months, they had enjoyed a dominant victory over the Tongan side and a success over Samoa. But as the Rugby League Ashes resumed after a long break, the English were failed to take the next step against the world champions.

"No excuses from us. We've had enough training periods to perform correctly on the field, and I don't think we've achieved that," the captain commented.

"Australia deserve praise. They were good defensively. But we've got plenty to improve. We're probably not as strong as we believed we were going into this series.

"So it's a necessary lesson for us, and we have plenty to enhance."

Australia 'Show Up and Prove Merciless'

Having been soundly beaten in an sloppy showing at Wembley, Wane side's were significantly better on the weekend back in the traditional strongholds of the North.

In an inspiring first half, England caused turnovers from the Kangaroos and had superior positioning and ball control, but importantly did not capitalize on the points tally.

Significantly, the English team have now scored just one score over the series so far, with St Helens hooker the forward scoring late on in the loss in the capital.

In contrast, the Kangaroos have scored six in two games - and when blunders began to affect the hosts' play just after the interval, it was a case of certainty, they were going to be heavily penalized.

First the playmaker went over, and then so too did the forward. From being level at four-all, the home side were 10 points adrift.

"Satisfied for the bulk of the game. I thought for most of the match we were solid," said Wane.

"The lapse for 10 minutes after half-time cost us greatly. The first try was avoidable and should not be scored in a Test match.

"We're deeply disappointed. So proud the players had a fight but very frustrated with that second-half lapse, which cost us dearly."

While the upcoming global tournament in Australia and Papua New Guinea is just under next year, England's immediate focus will be on trying to restore some pride, avoiding a 3-0 sweep and addressing the issues that frustrated the coach.

"I hoped to see greater effort directed toward Australia. I wanted us to apply sustained attack in the game - we failed to deliver last week," added the 61-year-old.

"We managed this week. It's just a minor refinements in our offense where we could have applied under increased strain. We need to defend both [tries] more effectively.

"Fair play to the Kangaroos - that is no slight to them. They perform and are clinical when they seize opportunities, and we weren't, but in defense we can and should do better.

"They will be obsessed to win 3-0 and we need to be obsessed to make it a competitive series. I've said that to the squad. This must become our primary goal. It's going to be a difficult week but the side that desires it the most will emerge victorious next week."

Intensity Needs to Elevate in Super League

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

However Wane thinks that the caliber of the Australian league - and level of the State of Origin matches between New South Wales and QLD - deliver a superior foundation for performing at the top of the global stage than what is available in the Europe.

The England coach noted that the packed Super League calendar allowed little opportunity for him to work with his team during the season, which will only pose more issues around how England can close the divide to the Kangaroos before heading to the Southern Hemisphere in 2026.

"They play a large number of internationals in their competition," Wane added.

"We have 10-15 a year. We need highly competitive games to improve the domestic league and increase our prospects of winning these types of matches.

"I couldn't even practice with the players. We never got on the field in the campaign and I had the full backing of everyone in Super League.

"I understand in the boots of the head coaches that must to win games. The competition is that packed. It's a pity but that's not the cause we lost today."