Reece Walsh Takes Center Stage as Dominant The Kangaroos Sweep England Aside in First Ashes Test
England's attacking frailties were exposed and punished by a ruthless Australian side as the tourists swept to a worryingly straightforward victory in the opening Test of the Ashes.
The England coach's side had talked at length about their motivation going into the opening series for over two decades, and they were certainly not short on endeavour at Wembley. However, in the crucial moments, it was the world champions who showed more composure in front of a historic crowd for an series match in the United Kingdom of over sixty thousand spectators.
Brilliant Performance from Reece Walsh
Led by an outstanding showing in offense and defense from Brisbane Broncos’ Walsh, the Kangaroos were deserving and convincing victors in the first match of the three-game contest, meaning the hosts must triumph at Everton’s Hill Dickinson Stadium next Saturday to sustain their aspirations of a series victory since 1970.
England will have to be much better with the ball if they are to achieve that. On several instances in the opening period, the hosts found themselves in promising positions but they were unable to cross for any points. That was in large measure thanks to Walsh, who pulled off two wonderful turnovers.
Crucial Plays of the Game
The first came as Herbie Farnworth seemed certain to put Dom Young in for what would have been the opening try, then the fullback stopped Lewis as the break approached. By then, the Kangaroos had gone ahead as Reece Walsh himself completed a wonderful move.
Nathan Cleary converted before adding a penalty on the stroke of the interval to establish a eight-point advantage. It was a pivotal point, as was the score for Angus Crichton shortly after the resumption which made it fourteen to nil in favour of the Kangaroos. England now had to cross the line thrice and that seemed to halt their drive.
Should there have been uncertainty about the winners, they were decisively settled with a quarter-hour to go. Cameron Munster’s half-break was backed up by Angus Crichton, who broke through Jack Welsby for the Kangaroos' third score.
That made it twenty to zero and there was added disappointment in the final minutes as Walsh completed another scintillating attack, taking advantage of a weary and visibly shot English defense for his second.
Match Result and Looking Ahead
By then, home fans had begun to filter out and many missed Daryl Clark’s consolation, which at least avoided the home side finishing scoreless. Nonetheless, there are many issues for the coach to address going into what is now a do-or-die match next weekend.
- Home Side: Full team lineup.
- Interchange: Litten, Walmsley, Trout, McMeeken.
- Try: Daryl Clark.
- Conversion: Mikey Lewis.
- Visitors: Starting lineup.
- Bench: Reserves.
- Tries: Walsh 2, Crichton 2.
- Kicks: Nathan Cleary (five).
