Game 1 (Wembley)
Australia 26-6 England (HT: 12-8)
AUS: Walsh 22', 71', Crichton 45', 65'
ENG: Clark 76'
Game 2 (Everton):
Australia 14-4 England (HT: 4-4)
AUS: Munster 49', Young 53'
Game 3 (Leeds):
Australia 30-8 England (12-8)
AUS: Addo-Carr 5', Young 26', Grant 62', Walsh 68', 78'
ENG: Williams 33'
While Australia’s 3-0 series win was expected (their 14th straight rugby league Ashes series win since 1973), the quality of the contests varied.
The Kangaroos won all three games against England comfortably but were rusty by their usually high standards, registering a 66% completion rate and 15 errors at Wembley, 69% and 15 in Liverpool, and 67% and 15 in Leeds.
After a poor start at Wembley, England showed more intent at Liverpool (but were still held tryless), and were deep into the contest at Leeds, only trailing 12-8 after 60 minutes before Harry Grant’s try put the game away.
Australia’s spine of Reece Walsh/Cameron Munster/Nathan Cleary/Grant sparked the Kangaroos’ dominance: Walsh, Munster, and Grant all earned Player of the Match awards; Walsh scored try doubles in the first and third Tests, and Cleary kicked 13 goals from 14.
Hooker Jez Litten was one of England’s best: he played 51 minutes off the bench in the first Test (with Daryl Clark starting) and wore the 9 in the second and third Tests. He engineered their crucial try at Leeds, breaking from dummy half, stepping past Australian defenders, and kicking ahead for George Williams to score. It got England back in the game after Australia led 12-0.
So, did the return of the rugby league Ashes live up to the hype? Probably not: Australia were rusty but had plenty of class, while England couldn’t capitalise on their scoring opportunities (only two tries all series), and the gulf between the NRL and Super League standards was clear.
It's Reece Walsh's 2025 and we're just living in it
Reece Walsh’s Kangaroos debut cemented his season of individual brilliance (including a few weeks on the sideline with injury), guiding the Broncos from three double-digit deficits in the finals and winning the Clive Churchill Medal.
Walsh scored two tries at Wembley (combining with Broncos teammates Kotoni Staggs and Gehamat Shibasaki) and also saved two, ensuring that England only scored one try instead of two or three. He also threw a spectacular behind-the-back flick pass for Angus Crichton (eventually disallowed) which would have given Australia a 12-0 lead.
The second Test wasn’t as good: he was caught in some awkward positions when England players were attempting to catch kicks and was sin binned for a shoulder charge on Dom Young while trying to stop the Newcastle Knights winger from scoring. Walsh’s yellow card potentially left Australia vulnerable, leading 14-4 with 15 minutes left.
His third Test was better, with two tries in the final 13 minutes as Australia skipped away. His first came from a regathered pass (knocked down by Harry Newman) and his second featured great footwork off a scrum to bewitch the England defence.
While Walsh’s critics will jump all over his mistakes, fans of Walsh will accept it’s part of his game: THAT sin bin against Canberra in the qualifying final is a prime example. His indiscretion against Hudson Young led to two quick Canberra tries that should have nailed the game shut. But, with time to regroup, Walsh returned and started Brisbane’s comeback with a try, destroyed the Raiders’ flimsy right edge defence, and kicked the penalty goal to send the game into extra time.
He continued that momentum into the preliminary final win over Penrith and the Grand Final win over Melbourne.
His ability to forget mistakes and win a game out of nowhere is what makes Walsh an exhilarating and frustrating superstar. Assuming he keeps his form and stays fit, then he should be Australia’s fullback for next year’s World Cup.
Because of the (World Cup) Implication
While the 2026 Rugby League World Cup is still a year away, the Ashes is the last serious hit out for Australia and England before next October. On current form, Australia will be warm favourites to retain the Paul Barrière Trophy.
The Australian and England Ashes squads should be similar for the RLWC, but there’s bound to be a few bolters from the 2026 NRL and Super League premierships. Reece Walsh and Gehamat Shibasaki forced themselves into the Ashes squad through the Broncos’ premiership run and Mark Nawaqanitawase had only played one NRL game this time last year.
On England’s side, will the NRL experience of Dom Young, Herbie Farnworth, Morgan Smithies, Kai Pearce-Paul, AJ Brimson, and Matty Nicholson help them to make another World Cup Final? Especially when Australia, New Zealand, Samoa, and Tonga will also be full of NRL talent playing in familiar conditions?
When, or if, will see another Ashes series?
After Australia clinched the Ashes in Liverpool, attention turned to the third Test team: with nothing riding on the game, would coach Kevin Walters play the reserves or stay full-strength? Walters ended up going full-strength, with captain Isaah Yeo returning.
An Australian jersey should be earned and not handed out because the first-choice players are being rested for a “dead rubber”, so Walters made the right choice (despite the complaints on social media). There’s also the ridiculous conspiracy – with Walters a proud Queenslander - of all the reserves being New South Welshmen. While this state bias may have been true in the ‘80s, it’s just clickbait/meme fuel now.
With only three games on this tour, the reserves couldn’t play any footy: while they’ll say all the right things about supporting the first-choice players, only being able to train for three weeks would be frustrating. Though you can’t return to the classic Kangaroo Tours, playing two or three tour games (against the Super League grand finalists and the England Knights) is possible.
These could be played mid-week without needing to extend the tour by much, thought you’d need a bigger squad, and a specialist Emus jersey would be a popular addition to the NRL’s Christmas jersey sales. If England comes to Australia in 2028, they could play the NRL grand finalists and the PMs XIII. Would the extra tour games have helped Australia’s overall rustiness in this series (especially their 60% completion rates and double-digit errors)?
Even though the stars would be resting, extra game could have help with overall cohesion and confidence.
The British & Irish Lions showed extended tours can work, playing six tour games in Australia this year (Western Force, Queensland Reds, NSW Waratahs, ACT Brumbies, AUNZ Invitational XV, First Nations & Pasifika XV). While the Super Rugby teams were out of season, it was only by a few weeks. There will be a similar timeframe if the Emus play Super League teams.
Will we see extended Ashes tours in the future? Or will they stick with the status quo?