Australia 20 England 21
Last week it was scrum versus skill. English scrums, Australian skill.
This week, at the first scrum, a determined Wallaby eight wheeled the English and won the put-in.
If the roar from the crowd seemed to salute a triumph rather greater than winning a mere scrum, you could forgive them. The Wallabies had leaked two penalty tries last week when their scrum crumpled like a couple of sheets of toilet paper.
Didn't matter. They could run and pass. So they did. They showed how to work an overlap and how to engineer a runner into a gap and then support him. It won them the first test.
This week, however, England re-discovered their skill level and their urgency. They attacked and outscored the Wallabies in tries in the first half.
They hunted the ball at the breakdown rather more accurately, disrupted the Wallaby pack and strung passes together. Fullback Ben Foden - one of their best in the first test - ran the ball back strongly and rookie halfback Ben Youngs rocked the Wallabies.
He scooted through a big hole in the lineout, found space and did Wallaby winger Drew Mitchell with a winger's swerve - full of pace and elusiveness.
This was an England which had stopped thinking they could just turn up and win the set pieces and the points would follow. The Australians, however, seemed to think they could just turn up and pass the ball - and the English would fall over.
Instead they defended with vigour and Foden, winger Chris Ashton and Youngs all impressed. They had also got their selection right.
Youngs instead of Danny Care and mobile young lock Courtney Lawes instead of the stolid Simon Shaw were sound choices, who made a difference.
England still do not have the silky, clever, off-the-ball running and piercing distribution of the Wallabies. Second five-eighths Matt Giteau showed that with a pearl of a try after sleight of hand by first five-eighths Quade Cooper.
He feinted to Giteau and then put winger Digby Ioane through a hole to feed Giteau, backing up.
England drove strongly back on attack and Ashton scuttled through a gap and swerved past Wallaby fullback James O'Connor - one of the Australians best last week. That made it 15-13 to the English at halftime - and they deserved the lead.
The Wallabies straightened their heads up - and more slick passing cut England to ribbons. Giteau scored his second try after skilled, high-octane running and transfers from Cooper, O'Connor and Mitchell.
At that stage, it was Giteau 20, England 15. Toby Flood kept England in it with another penalty before going off injured and letting England rugby royalty - Jonny Wilkinson - return to the venue of a great English victory; which he marked by kicking another goal to give England a 21-20 lead.
With the game in the balance, it became an arm wrestle. Giteau ruined his evening by missing a kickable penalty. So did Wilkinson.
England ran the clock down well, holding the ball and grunting it up.
Yes, Australia had the skill. But England had the kill.
Australia 20 (M. Giteau 2 tries, 2 con, 2 pen), England 21 (B. Youngs, C. Ashton tries; T. Flood con, 2 pen; J. Wilkinson pen). Halftime: 13-15.
