Rugby League Ashes: Is the England v Australia series revived to stay?

Although losing three home games is annoying, this was the experience England needed before the World Cup. You can’t be among the best in the world unless you face the best in the world.

There are some factors that England will always struggle to overcome. Rugby league is a minority sport here, with 11 times the number of people playing it in Australia, where popularity and visibility means much greater funding is available.

But there is also a mental block. Did England, who had never led at any point during the three matches in the series, really believe they could beat Australia?

England had a better completion average and made more passes than Australia in the first two matches – but by the final whistle in the third match, the Kangaroos had won by an aggregate score of 70-18 and had scored 11 tries to two.

They showed their ability in flashes across all three games, and their performance improved as the series went on. But the failure to convert chances, the hesitant attacking style – carrying the ball 10 metres, then hoping for the best – and regular individual errors in defense cost them dearly.

Structural issues also play a role. Super League teams already play more domestic matches than those in Australia’s National Rugby League, before the Premier League expands in 2026. The matches played in Australia, through the play-off system and the all-important State of Origin matches, are generally of a higher quality.

England coach Sean Wayne said: “What happens commercially with the Premier League is out of my hands, but the amount and intensity of games we play is an issue.” “We will play 10 more matches and are expected to kill it in next year’s World Cup.

He added: “I need to have a conversation in the next few weeks about the direction we are going in, and how we can prepare these players for next year’s World Cup.”

Wayne says, despite chants from Leeds fans that he will “be sacked in the morning”, he is “definitely” the man to lead England to the World Cup, so he will likely be the man who has to figure out how to beat Australia.

But the future of international rugby league – for Wayne, England and the Ashes – is far less certain.