England held their nerve in the face of a second-half fightback by Australia to end a frustrating autumn with a win at Twickenham.

The Wallabies trailed 13-3 at half time after man-of-the-match Ben Morgan had crossed and George Ford had kicked two penalties and a conversion.

But they struck back with touchdowns through Bernard Foley and Will Skelton. Only Morgan's second try and Ford's timely readjustment of his sights after missing two penalties enabled England to emerge triumphant from a finely-poised second half that saw two well- matched teams exchange blows.

If the game is a pointer to the clash between the group rivals at next year's World Cup, then a nerve-shredding night awaits at Twickenham on October 3.

Victory, only their second in seven games, offers England a measure of redemption after three-point losses to New Zealand and South Africa in the QBE Series - and it was their finest performance of the month.

After Samoa were despatched 28-9 last weekend, momentum has now been generated ahead of their next outing with Wales - also Group A opponents at England 2015 - awaiting in Cardiff in February's RBS 6 Nations opener. England coach Stuart Lancaster said the series had answered a lot of questions but insisted the victory would have no bearing when his side face Australia in the World Cup.

"The tournament will look after itself," he said. "Our planning is about getting better for our next game - Wales in the Millennium in the Six Nations."

There was no evidence of the tension that has enveloped England throughout the autumn as they made a high-tempo start in perfect conditions. Foley and Ford swapped early penalties before piecing together a try-scoring move in the 29th minute.

Folau knocked on a simple catch and after tightening the screw at the scrum, Brad Barritt made yards in midfield, giving Tom Wood the platform to send Morgan crashing over.

England led 13-3 after Ford converted as the first half came to an end, but Australia flew out the traps at the start of the second period.

Foley sent Ron Horne through a gap close to the breakdown and then gathered the return pass to dash home under the posts. The fly-half converted his try.

England, though, produced their second try with a five-metre scrum - secured after substitute Quade Cooper had been tackled over the whitewash as he gathered Brown's chip. The set-piece disintegrated and Morgan surged over for his second try with Ford converting.

Three minutes later Adam Ashley-Cooper raced clear and Michael Hooper carried into the heart of England's defence before Skelton blasted across the whitewash.

Ford continued to carry out his kicking duties and he duly landed three points to put England 23-17 in front before the result was settled by Ford's fourth penalty.

England: Brown, Watson, Barritt, Twelvetrees, May, Ford,Youngs, Marler, Hartley, Wilson, Attwood, Lawes, Wood, Robshaw, Morgan, Kruis. Replacements: Farrell for Barritt (62), Wigglesworth for Youngs (71), Mullan for Marler (55), Webber for Hartley (72), Brookes for Wilson (61), Kruis for Lawes (55), Haskell for Wood (78), Yarde for Kruis (79).

Australia: Folau, Speight, Ashley-Cooper, Toomua, Horne, Foley, Phipps, Slipper, Faingaa, Kepu, Carter, Simmons, McMahon, Hooper, McCalman. Replacements: Beale for Speight (64), Cooper for Foley (46), White for Phipps (50), Robinson for Slipper (68), Hanson for Faingaa (73), Alexander for Kepu (52), Jones for Simmons (41), Skelton for McMahon (59).

Att: 82,049

Referee: Jerome Garces (France).