There were plenty of nervous moments but the Wallabies held on for the win against Italy at Suncorp Stadium on Saturday afternoon.
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In what has been described as a ‘scrappy win’ the home side left it late to secure the 40-27 victory over the Azzurri.
Italy dominated possession and field position for the first stanza but when Australia did find its attacking form it was hard to stop, piling on three tries in the first 40 minutes.
Wallabies coach Michael Cheika was feeling the strain.
"Sometimes you're going mad because … we create excellent play and then try and throw a cut out pass instead of just giving it to the guy next to them," Cheika said.
Israel Folau made history by becoming the first ever Wallaby to score two or more tries in three consecutive Tests.
Toby Smith was sin-binned with less than 10 minutes remaining in the game and the Wallabies, then up 28-27, were at real risk of being overrun by the Italian side.
There were a few more nervous moments as Italy threatened to take the lead but late tries to Bernard Foley and Reece Hodge allowed for the flattering scoreline.
The scare comes after last week's dismal showing against Scotland with some describing the Wallabies as a mere shadow of the team they were at the World Cup.
