Gareth Southgate had challenged his fringe players to show their best selves and play with freedom against Australia but an experimental England side fell flat at Wembley, despite coming away with a 1-0 win.
Ollie Watkins' goal shortly before the hour was enough to see off a spirited Socceroos but the visitors had the better of the chances in a friendly which will do little to convince Southgate that he has been overlooking his squad.
Jordan Henderson was the only Southgate regular to start - an experienced head or a player in desperate need of top-level minutes? - and earned a smattering of boos when he was substituted in the second half, presumably a judgement on his move to Saudi Arabia rather than his performance.
Henderson was not alone in a white shirt in struggling to impress, however, and the disappointment might be most keenly felt by James Maddison and Jarrod Bowen, two of the form players in the Premier League.
Maddison was lively, always demanding the ball and popping up in pockets of space, but his final ball was missing, aside from a fine pass for a Watkins effort off the woodwork.
Bowen started brightly but was well marshalled down the right hand side, and faded.
The West Ham forward was involved in the first chance of the game inside nine minutes, Conor Gallagher's driven ball narrowly evading Watkins and Maddison, but, from there, Australia took a surprising control of the match.
Orchestrated by the impressive Craig Goodwin, busy at No10, the Socceroos knocked England out of kilter with an adventurous and physical approach.
Sam Johnstone had already made a flying save from Keanu Bacchus before the visitors went close with what would have been a memorable Wembley strike.
Goodwin pickpocket Watkins in the centre circle and found Martin Boyle on the right. His cross was met first time by Mitchell Duke, who wrapped his foot around a sumptuous volley which flew just the wrong side of the near post.
At the other end, it was not happening for England, as Southgate's new-look attack struggled to gel and Australia bustled and pressed the hosts into mistakes.
When Maddison engineered some space from the left, he sent his shot ballooning out for a throw-in, looking down at the Wembley turf in a mixture of bemusement and embarrassment.
Next time, though, he was more clinical, driving forward and playing in Watkins who rounded Mat Ryan with a nice touch but could only strike the far post from a tight angle.
It was a sign of England's frustration that Gallagher and debutant Levi Colwill, who filled in at left-back, found themselves in the book before the interval.
Gallagher was cautioned for a lunge on Goodwin from behind and was lucky he was not already in the book for earlier planting his studs on Cameron Burgess, a decision which referee Stephanie Frappart - the first female official to take charge of a men's game at Wembley - awarded the other way.
Australia's best chance of a lively half came just before the interval and England had Lewis Dunk to thank for going in level after more loose defending.
Bacchus picked up a long ball and looked up to find find two yellow shirts cantering into the box. Ryan Strain's low shot beat Johnstone but not Dunk, who got made to make a desperate sliding clearance off the line.
England could only get better after the interval and Maddison, Bowen and Jack Grealish began to sharpen up, looking to interchange with quick touches.
From @TrentAA to @JackGrealish to Ollie Watkins 👏
— England (@England) October 13, 2023
The #ThreeLions' opener...pic.twitter.com/SnCuK5b2nY
When the winner came, though, it was route one. A punt back into the box by Trent Alexander-Arnold was not dealt with by Australia and Grealish flashed a low effort past Ryan, which was turned over the line by the sliding Watkins at the far post.
It recalled David Nugent stealing Jermain Defoe's goal against Andorra in 2007 and a stunned-looking Grealish did not initially celebrate with Watkins - although replays suggested his shot was creeping wide, which Watkins appeared to explain.
It was to be Grealish's last action, as Southgate wrung the changes on the hour, bringing up a flashpoint on the night when Henderson was booed by sections of the Wembley crowd as he made way for Kieran Trippier - another thorny issue for the manager to tackle.
A raft of changes meant a debut for Eddie Nketiah and much-needed minutes for Kalvin Phillips but it was Australia who continued to look the likeliest to score. With 10 minutes to play, Connor Metcalfe planted a header against the post from a deep corner, reflecting the visitors' dominance from set pieces all evening.
Graham Arnold's side finished the game on top, probing in search of an equaliser but were well-marshalled by Dunk, who came through another audition to be Harry Maguire's understudy well. A clean sheet and a gritty friendly win were the biggest positives from Southgate on a largely forgettable night.
