The home side's attacking frailties were laid bare and capitalized on by a clinical Australian side as the tourists swept to a worryingly straightforward victory in the first match of the Ashes.
Shaun Wane’s team had talked at length about their drive going into the opening series for 22 years, and they were definitely full of effort at Wembley. Yet, in the key instances, it was the reigning title holders who displayed more composure in front of a record attendance for an series match in the UK of over sixty thousand spectators.
Led by an outstanding showing in offense and defense from club star Reece Walsh, the Kangaroos were deserving and convincing victors in the opening Test of the three-game contest, meaning England must triumph at Goodison Park next weekend to keep alive their aspirations of a series victory since 1970.
They will have to be significantly improved with the possession if they are to achieve that. On several instances in the first half, the hosts found themselves in promising positions but they were failed to score for any tries. That was in no small part thanks to Walsh, who pulled off two superb interceptions.
The first came as Farnworth seemed destined to put Dom Young in for what would have been the first score, then Walsh denied Mikey Lewis as half-time neared. By then, the Kangaroos had taken the lead as Reece Walsh himself completed a wonderful move.
Nathan Cleary added the extras before adding a two-pointer on the stroke of half-time to establish a two-score advantage. It was a pivotal point, as was the score for Angus Crichton shortly 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 halt their momentum.
If there were any doubt about the victors, they were decisively settled with a quarter-hour to go. 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 added disappointment in the final minutes as Walsh completed another breathtaking move, taking advantage of a tired and clearly exhausted England defensive line for his second.
By then, home fans had begun to filter out and many did not see Clark's late try, which at least prevented the home side finishing scoreless. Nonetheless, there are plenty of questions for Wane to answer going into what is now a must-win Test next Saturday.
A seasoned casino analyst with over a decade of experience in online gambling, specializing in slot machine reviews and player strategy.
