Grandstand Grant secures Ashes whitewash: Talking points as Australia beat England in third test

Harry Grant capped a superb individual series as Australia secured an Ashes whitewash with an 30-8 victory over a stubborn England in Leeds in Saturday's third and final test.

The Melbourne Storm hooker relinquished the captaincy to the returning Isaah Yeo for the tourists, but remained crucial once more in attack and defence with a game-sealing try.

Having wrapped up the series in Liverpool last week, coach Kevin Walters resisted the urge to make wholesale changes as they pursued a clean sweep against their bitter rivals.

Ultimately, his loyalty bore fruit as the Kangaroos withstood sustained pressure from their hosts again, to leave opposite number Shaun Wane with key questions over his future.

DAZN News looks at the key talking points from AMT Headingley Rugby Stadium.

Grandstand Grant ensures clean sweep

Reece Walsh may have captured the headlines in London, while Cameron Munster pulled the strings in Liverpool, but at the last, Australia's unsung ringmaster earned his flowers.

Grant has been one of the best performers for the Kangaroos for some years now, and was instrumental three years ago on British soil as they won the Rugby League World Cup.

Stepping into the shoes of Cameron Smith at club, state and international level is no easy task, but the Yeppoon-born star has firmly put his own mark on the dummy half position.

It was his work at Wembley that laid the platform for Walsh, and his combinations with Munster, the Fulton-Reilly Award winner for player of the series, were crucial last weekend.

Here in Leeds, he guided his team around the park in a tenacious first half, then organised their defensive line under immense repeat pressure, even with their backs to the wall.

Ultimately, it was his dart from dummy half just inside the final quarter that put daylight between the two sides. Might he finally end his wait for NRL silverware next year in Victoria?

Walters repaid as defence wins out again

Pundits back home raised questions over the appointment of former Brisbane Broncos coach Walters before the tour, after Mal Meninga stood down to take charge of Perth Bears.

They further questioned whether the ex-Maroons boss should have rotated his squad for an effective dead rubber, having left six of his squad out in the cold for the trip entirely.

Instead, Walters saw his faith repaid by a team that has sometimes looked less than the sum of its superstar parts on occasion, with their opening exchanges among their best.

But it was in their defensive effort that they built the bedrock of their success, particularly after a first half where England kept them within touching distance with their own guile.

A sustained twenty-minute barrage inside their half after the break saw Australia come close to losing the lead for the first time this series - but they hung on to prove their worth.

Walters will return to Australia now, one year out from the Rugby League World Cup, hopeful he has done enough to retain the job - and few would surely begrudge him his glory.

Wane left to wonder before World Cup

The England boss was close to tears after defeat in Liverpool, and hoped that his side would deliver their response to ensure they did not suffer a whitewash in their back yard.

Instead, Wane was forced to watch as his team suffered their heaviest defeat of the series, though the twenty-two-point gap on the scoreboard does not show the full picture.

The hosts were arguably cleaner with ball in hand than their visitors across the game, and maligned captain George Williams superbly finished for their only try of the match.

But once again, England could not find answers to Australia's brick wall when the margin was only four points, and a late flurry of scores showed the gap in class and fitness.

The Kangaroos, by their own admission, have not quite fired to the best of their abilities, and yet conceded only twice over the whitewash across 240 minutes of rugby league.

With the Rugby League World Cup just over the horizon, it seems unlikely the trigger will be pulled on Wane's tenure - but surely the coach faces his own doubts on his future.

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