Now the Kangaroos face a must-win clash with England in Melbourne next Sunday just to keep alive their chances of avoiding the unwanted tag of becoming the first Australian team to miss the final of an international tournament since the inaugural World Cup in Paris in 1954, won 16-12 by Great Britain over France.

Even if they triumph and then beat Samoa the following Sunday at WIN Stadium, the Kangaroos would go into the November 15 final in Wellington as outsiders against New Zealand after suffering their most comprehensive defeat since the 24-0 loss to the Kiwis in the 2005 Tri-Nations decider in Leeds.

That result was historic as it was the first time Australia had failed to win a Test series or tournament since the touring 1978 Kangaroos suffered controversial back-to-back to defeats against France in 1978, and the manner of Saturday night's loss suggests New Zealand may now have a superior depth of talent to draw on.

A loss to England at AAMI Park on Saturday night could see Australia plummet to the world's No.3 ranked rugby league nation and technically leave the Kangaroos needing to qualify for the next Four Nations tournament if they were to lose to Samoa. It would also be likely to lead to calls, like those in England after their football team failed to advance past the pool system of this year's FIFA World Cup, for a quota system to limit the number of players from Britain, New Zealand and the Pacific Islands in the NRL.

Since 2005, the Kiwis have beaten Australia in the finals of the 2008 World Cup and the 2010 Four Nations tournament but normal service appeared to have been resumed when the Kangaroos thrashed New Zealand 34-2 in last year's World Cup decider at Old Trafford.

However, what happened in Brisbane on Saturday night should dispel any doubts about the competitiveness of international rugby league as not only did the Kiwis dominate against Australia but Samoa showed they will be no pushovers in this tournament in their 32-26 loss to England.

In fact, if Anthony Milford had played for Samoa the Four Nations may have opened with an even bigger upset than the one provided by New Zealand in the second game of the double-header, which drew a crowd of 47,813 at Suncorp Stadium and was watched by 699,000 viewers around Australia on Nine and Gem.

What the two matches demonstrated was that the influx of players from other countries into the NRL means that the best players in many positions are no longer Australian.

For example, the Kiwis appeared to have the best international halves pairing in Shaun Johnston and Keiran Foran, New Zealand's Jesse Bromwich and England's James Graham continued the form that made them arguably the best props in the NRL this season and England's Ryan Hall again showed why many consider him the best winger in the game.

Without Johnathan Thurston, the Kangaroos are seriously lacking for a genuine Test class five-eighth, while Bromwich, Jason Taumalolo, Kevin Procter and Greg Eastwood ran roughshod over an ageing Australian forward pack.

But it is not just the players who featured in the double-header that underline the depth that New Zealand and England now boast, with both nations missing a host of talent.

While some will attribute Australia's failure to win a record 17th consecutive Test to the long list of unavailable players, the Kiwis were unable to call on the likes of Issac Luke, Roger Tuivasa-Sheck, Dallin Watene-Zelezniak, Elijah Taylor, Alex Glenn, Sam Moa, Ben Matulino, Ben Henry, Sam McKendry and Sonny Bill Williams.

England is also without the services of Sam Burgess, Jack Reed, James Roby and Jonny Lomax, while skipper Sean O'Loughlin missed the opening match of the tournament with a quadriceps injury suffered in the Super League grand final.

In addition, England had less time to prepare as the Super League decider was only played two weeks earlier at Old Trafford and the five NRL-based members of Saturday's team - Graham, George and Thomas Burgess, Gareth Widdop and Sam Tomkins - had never played with some of the newcomers to the squad, including halfback Matt Smith and hookers Josh Hodgson and Daryl Clark.

The Kiwis and Lions will be bolstered this week by the return of Luke, Vatuvei and O'Loughlin respectively, but the injury to Daly Cherry-Evans may force Australian coach Tim Sheens to blood Brisbane halfback Ben Hunt at five-eighth for a Test against England that may redefine the code's international order.