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Australia head coach Darren Lehmann admits that he and the board of selectors must shoulder a great deal of responsibility for relinquishing the Ashes.
On the third morning of the fourth Test at Trent Bridge on Saturday, England wasted little time in taking the three wickets they needed to secure victory and an unassailable 3-1 scoreline.
Australia's loss was soon followed by captain Michael Clarke's announcement that he will retire from international cricket after the final Test at The Oval later this month, and Lehmann was honest when asked how much blame should be apportioned to himself and the selectors.
"A lot," he said. "As a coach and selectors we've got things wrong at certain times, there's no doubt about that.
"We've got to own up like players have to and everyone else that our performances weren't good enough, full stop.
"We've got to work on how we're going to move forward."
Clarke's retirement opens the door for Steve Smith to be handed the captaincy, and Lehmann believes there is no better man to help Australia move on.
"We lost one of our greats and when you lose someone as great a player as Michael was - and a leader - you've got to find the next man and that I would think, with board approval, that would be Steve Smith," Lehmann said.
"He'll be aggressive as all Australian captains have been, but I think he'll work out what works for him on and off the field the best.
"He did a great job in a caretaker role for us under really tough circumstances (following the death of Phil Hughes).
"I think he'll grow and be a really good leader. I think it improved Michael's batting and hopefully it's the same for Steven. He's a good player."