England’s Ollie Watkins marked his international return with a second-half winner as Gareth Southgate’s experimental side labored to a 1-0 friendly win against Australia at a wet Wembley Stadium.
Only three of the starting 11 had more than 10 caps, with 10 changes to the side that beat Scotland 3-1 in England’s last international and Chelsea defender Levi Colwill making his debut.
Watkins, returning for the first time since March 2022, slid the ball in at the far post in the 57th minute after Jack Grealish fired across goal.
It was the Aston Villa forward’s third goal for England and second in successive matches, although 563 days apart.
Southgate rang the changes after the break against opponents who could easily have been ahead in the first half, with Watkins making way for debutant Eddie Nketiah in the 73rd among a flurry of substitutions.
