Australia 17 England 21: Ability to battle proves key in Sydney as bright future beckons for Red Rose

Mirroring the second Test, England built a 21-10 lead through tries by Freddie Steward and Marcus Smith but then had to show resolve to weather a final-quarter assault from the Wallabies.

Lawes and Luke Cowan-Dickie combined to claim the crucial turnover that relieved the pressure as Eddie Jones masterminded a second series victory over the team he coached from 2001 to 2005.

“It was tough. I’ve spoken through the whole tour about how, as a team, we want to have that feeling of playing for each other,” said the England captain.

“When you are in those kind of scenarios, that’s the only thing that gets you through. Your body is broken, you’ve played for 11 months, you’re at the end of a tough tour and you’re under the cosh.

“What are you going to do? You’re going to dig in for your mates. I think we showed what it means to us.”

Lawes revealed that England were motivated by the repeated claims made by Australia that they had been targeted off the ball as part of baiting tactics used by the tourists. Wallabies prop Taniela Tupou also said that he wanted to “smash” opposite number Ellis Genge.

“They give us a good bit of fuel in the press to be fair. They were talking smack about us. That motivated us a bit,” added Lawes.

“Some people were targeting Gengey and some people were calling us Poms and whatnot. It’s all good fuel for our tank and any good team uses that as motivation.”

Leeds-born veteran scrum-half Danny Care was hooked in the 37th minute as the price for an error-ridden display that included a charged-down kick, knock-on and missed tackle.

Jones had seen enough and removed Care meaning it could be the last time Care is seen in an England jersey, having only just returned following nearly four years in international exile.

Australia had promised to fly out of the blocks after conceding early leads in the first two Tests and they backed up their words with actions as they grabbed the lead through a Noah Lolesio penalty before creating a half-chance down the right.

Both sides made errors freely throughout the first half and it was a mistake that cost them a certain try when Nick Frost split a tricky pass from Taniela Tupou as England’s defence began to shake.

By now rookie Tommy Freeman was starting to cause the Wallabies problems and when Owen Farrell found the posts England were off the mark.

Just as Jones’ men were starting to hit their stride, however, they were picked apart by a mesmerising try that began when Porter failed to tackle Marika Koroibete in midfield, providing the space for Nic White and Tom Wright to combine until the latter went over.

Porter missed a tackle on Reece Hodge and then Koroibete charged through Care as England waved opposition runners through, although a second Farrell penalty at least kept them in the chase.

Shortly after Care was replaced by Jack van Poortvliet, Freeman began to run amok out wide until Steward pierced the home defence.

Freeman continued to cause problems in the third quarter and England were beginning to take control with a breakaway try from Smith strengthening their position.

Moments after sending Ollie Chessum into space with a short pass, Smith leapt on Lolesio’s fumble which was in part a result of interference from Luke Cowan-Dickie and showed his pace to sprint over.

Crucial tackles from van Poortvliet and Steward kept Australia out but the line eventually cracked when replacement hooker Fainga’a burrowed over.

England’s lead was now 21-17 but despite the onslaught they were facing, they showed impressive resilience to sweep over the finishing line.

Six years ago Jones – who confirmed that the withdrawal of Care was tactical – delivered a 3-0 whitewash of Australia and he admitted winning this series was every bit as satisfying.

“This was tougher,” he said. “We had a more established team in 2016 coming on the back of the Grand Slam and coming on the back of the 2015 team.

“We are nurturing this team at the moment. We have got a good group of senior players and we have got all these guys coming through, so it was an entirely different experience.”