England reduced to rabble amid the rubble

England 185 and 223 Australia 456 Australia win by an innings and 48 runs

There have been quicker Ashes series defeats than that suffered by Nasser Hussain's outclassed England in Australia, but it is questionable whether any have been easier or more convincing. Eleven days and 896.4 overs was all it took for Australia to move into an unbeatable 3-0 lead and put an incompetent touring team firmly in their place.

After competitive and occasionally impressive performances against other countries, many thought Hussain's England had a reasonable chance of pushing Australia hard this winter. However, after crushing defeats in Brisbane, Adelaide and now here, by 384 runs, an innings and 51 runs and an innings and 48 runs respectively, it can be seen that the chasm between the two sides is getting wider, not narrower.

The England captain admitted as much after a three-day hiding. "We have been very poor in three games and have been outplayed completely," he said. "We were embarrassingly poor. We have been left beaten, battered and bruised. It is disappointing to have let people and ourselves down so much. We were building up a decent side, a decent record, but over the last two months everything has been taken away from us by a great Australian side and our own inadequacies. The injury situation has also been unbelievable.

"In all the Ashes series that I have played in we have not progressed at all, which is very disappointing. I think if anything they have got better. If we want to win back the Ashes we need to have a serious look at everything in our game, not just the top 10 or 15 players."

Even on the brink of defeat, a further injury was to befall England's hapless squad. There have been some horrific sights involving England players on the field during this series which have usually featured an inability to control the bat or ball in their hands. Nothing, however, compared to the sight of Alex Tudor writhing around on the floor after being struck on the head by a 90mph thunderbolt from the Australian fast bowler Brett Lee.

Tudor was carried off on a stretcher with a deep gash above his left eye which required six stitches and was kept in hospital for observation overnight. Thankfully, the X-ray showed there was no fracture to the skull. After such a blow it came as no surprise to see Alec Stewart and Stephen Harmison give themselves a bit of room against the speedster on this fast, bouncy but excellent WACA pitch.

If any moment summed up England's ineptitude on this tour, it was the shambolic run out of Michael Vaughan in the fifth over of the day. The night-watchman Richard Dawson had already been dismissed without a run added to the overnight score of 33 for 1. Worse was to come in a three-ball spell where three wickets should have fallen.

Mark Butcher was run out by Vaughan in the first innings of this match and such misunderstandings lead to a breakdown of trust between batsmen when they run between the wickets. However, the relationship these two are in the process of forming would be better off in a circus ring. All they now require to have an Australian crowd in stitches of laughter are a couple of red noses and some big black boots.

England had had to wait until the 29th ball of the day for their first run-scoring opportunity and when it came it proved fatal. Vaughan pushed a ball from Glenn McGrath through the off-side for a single. The fielder, Lee, dived and knocked the ball five yards to his left at mid-off. Because of the fumble both batsmen for some inexplicable reason looked for the second run.

However, on seeing Lee had the ball in his hand, Butcher sent the fast-approaching Vaughan back. Lee threw to Adam Gilchrist at the wrong end but he had time to throw the ball to McGrath, who took the bails off with Vaughan yards short of the crease.

Next ball, and obviously still thinking about this cock-up, Butcher was caught plum in front to a full delivery from McGrath that drifted back into him. In frustration, not dissent, the left-hander flicked at the stumps with his bat and sent the bails flying. In two minutes of madness he lost his partner, his wicket and £1,000 after being fined 20 per cent of his match fee for this petulant act.

With the first ball of the next over from Jason Gillespie, England should have been 34 for 5. Hussain edged his first ball at a catchable height to Shane Warne at slip, only to see the leg-spinner grass another simple chance.

Australia's bowling in the morning session was outstanding and a lesson to those watching in the visitors' dressing-room. There were 56 balls bowled before one strayed down the leg side and 125 before the first boundary of the day was struck.

Setting the standard was McGrath who, even though he has taken 17 wickets at a cost of 17.6 in this series, has not been that impressive. Yesterday, he was back at his best. In an opening spell of seven overs he took one wicket for four runs.

Still requiring 237 to make Australia bat again, England had only pride to play for, but Hussain and Robert Key showed they have plenty of this. The pair stuck around for two and a half hours before Key fell leg-before to the relentless McGrath.

Hussain only scored 61 but it was one of the braver innings he will play. This is not for taking everything that Lee threw at him – he was struck on the body several times – but because it showed the true fighter he is. In the face of certain defeat and after wrongly being given out by Rudi Koertzen – who had a poor game – he should have walked off with his head held high rather than looking disconsolately at the ground.

An intrusive cameraman filmed him take his frustration out on a bag in the dressing room but after what he has been through in the last month his team are lucky it is not their backsides he was kicking.

Stewart scored a flamboyant 66 but the only thing it helped was his average. When Harmison was bowled by Lee what everybody had been predicting, even before the toss in Brisbane, became fact – Australia had retained the Ashes. In a tight circle of baggy green caps the 11 players hugged each other like a true team. At some stage last night Ricky Ponting will have led a rendition of Under the Southern Cross and they will have drunk until they dropped with their caps on.

What now for England? They have some tough decisions to make about the future of some of their senior players before the fourth Test in Melbourne on Boxing Day. Next, though, it is one-day cricket and getting their preparations right for the World Cup in February.

"Having the one-dayers now will help," Hussain said, "because this team needs to re-group, get fit and almost start again with a clean slate. We need fresh new people, the [Ronnie] Irani type of character to pop in. But I can tell the one-day boys, if they think they are going to have an easy ride they have got another thing coming. I hope they are working their butts off in Adelaide."

PERTH SCOREBOARD

Third day; England won toss

ENGLAND – First innings 185

AUSTRALIA – First innings 456 (D R Martyn 71, R T Ponting 68, S R Waugh 53; C White 5-127).

ENGLAND – Second innings (Overnight: 33 for 1)
M P Vaughan run out 9
R K J Dawson c Waugh b Gillespie 8
M A Butcher lbw b McGrath 0
*N Hussain c Gilchrist b Warne 61
R W T Key lbw b McGrath 23
ÝA J Stewart not out 66
C White st Gilchrist b Warne 15
A J Tudor retired hurt 3
S J Harmison b Lee 5
C E W Silverwood absent hurt
Extras (b8, lb5, w1, nb15) 29
Total (376 min, 82.1 overs) 223

Fall: 1-13 (Trescothick), 2-33 (Dawson), 3-34 (Vaughan), 4-34 (Butcher), 5-102 (Key), 6-169 (Hussain), 7-208 (White), 8-223 (Harmison).

Bowling: Lee 18.1-3-72-2 (nb12, w1) (5-1-21-1, 5-1-17-0, 8.1-1-34-1); McGrath 21-9-24-2 (nb3) (12-6-9-1, 9-3-15-1); Gillespie 15-4-35-1 (9-4-8-1, 5-0-22-0, 1-0-5-0); Warne 26-5-70-2 (19-5-45-0, 7-0-25-2); Martyn 2-0-9-0 (one spell).

Progress: Third day: 50: 132 min, 28.3 overs. Lunch: 78-4 (Hussain 23, Key 15) 38 overs.

100: 220 min, 49 overs. 150: 292 min, 65.2 overs. Tea: 154-5 (Hussain 58, Stewart 31) 66 overs. 200: 340 min, 77 overs. New ball taken after 80 overs at 214-7. Tudor retired hurt at 214-7 off 80.2 overs. Innings closed: 4.54pm.

Hussain 50: 210 min, 144 balls, 6 fours. Stewart 50: 104 min, 66 balls, 8 fours.

Umpires: S A Bucknor (WI) and R E Koertzen (SA).

TV replay umpire: D J Harper (Aus)

Match referee: Wasim Raja (Pak).

Man of the match: D R Martyn.