England 1-0 Australia: Ollie Watkins on target in unconvincing win for Three Lions

It was also a winning night for Sporting Life readers who backed Michael Beardmore's headline tip of 13/4 about England to win having been level at the break.

A sold-out Wembley crowd watched a surprisingly hard-fought friendly between these great sporting rivals as the hosts experimented with Euro 2024 in mind, boss Gareth Southgate making 10 changes from last month's win in Scotland.

England can wrap up qualification against Italy on Tuesday night and Watkins boosted his chances of being on the plane to Germany with a goal and solid display.

The Socceroos can count themselves unlucky to leave Wembley without so much as a goal to celebrate.

Lewis Dunk’s brilliant block denied Ryan Strain ending a fine team move just before half-time and Connor Metcalfe headed off the outside of the post late in the second period.

But England rode their luck to emerge victorious as Watkins, winning his first cap since March 2022, turned in Jack Grealish’s cross-shot at the far post in the 57th minute having earlier hit a post.

Elsewhere, the Republic of Ireland's slim hopes of qualification for Euro 2024 through Group B were extinguished with a 2-0 home defeat by Greece on a night when three of the continent's powerhouses booked their spots in Germany.

Kylian Mbappe scored twice as France secured qualification by beating the Netherlands 2-1 in the Republic's group, while Romelu Lukaku was among the scorers as Belgium sealed a top-two spot in Group F with a 3-2 win in Austria.

And Cristiano Ronaldo continued to prove age is only a number, scoring twice as Portugal held off a Slovakia fightback to win 3-2 in Porto, sealing their place at next year's finals and all but mathematically ensuring they will finish top of Group J.

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