Australia prevailed 6-0 over France in an ugly, try-less contest to seal the three-test series 2-0 and leave a Melbourne crowd frustrated.
In a low-quality clash that even purists would have struggled to appreciate, second half penalties to Bernard Foley and Nic White backed by a dogged defence at Docklands stadium secured the Wallabies' sixth successive win.
Having let the home side do as they pleased in a 50-23 romp in Brisbane, a more resolute France, with 10 changes to the starting lineup, had the better of a scoreless first half and threatened to snatch the match in a last-gasp raid.
But the Wallabies held on and Les Bleus' chance to break a 24-year winning drought on Australian soil went begging.
Australia coach Ewen McKenzie was unapologetic after a match which saw both sides refuse to attack from their half while committing myriad handling errors, despite the perfect conditions under a closed roof.
"It was pretty much a game of chicken in the first half," he told reporters of a 40-minute period of kick-to-kick.
"Whatever gets talked about the game, I thought the performance of our scrum was very good and our maul defence.
"We'll be the toughest critics, don't worry, about the game. The fact is that we'll walk away with the trophy again that we lost in the past and move on to next week and obviously do better."
Led by reinstated skipper Thierry Dusautoir and fired by hulking centre Mathieu Bastareaud, France came out swinging and very nearly scored a try in the third minute.
A kick forward sparked a foot-race between Foley and fullback Brice Dulin to the line, but the Wallabies flyhalf prevailed to cut off the chance.
Australia were controversially denied a try to number eight Ben McCalman on video review in the 22nd minute, with inside centre Matt Toomua deemed to have tackled an opponent without the ball, though the contact was minimal and superfluous to the play.
Few promising drives to the line were to follow and both sides' kickers failed to punish their opponents.
Dulin missed a long-range penalty in the opening quarter and scrumhalf Morgan Parra botched a second chance three minutes before the break.
Wallabies scrumhalf White repaid the favour twice in two minutes straight after the re-start, spraying one kick wide and striking a post with his second, and though the rebound offered a scoring chance out wide, the home side left it begging with a pass that sailed too high.
A restless crowd jeered new captain Michael Hooper when he pointed at the posts for another penalty shot in the 53rd minute, rather than set up a try chance, and ironic cheers rang out when Foley slotted the kick to finally tick the scoreboard over.
An off-side penalty against replacement flanker Antoine Burban gave White a penalty he could not miss in the 65th minute, but the scrumhalf drew further groans from the stands when he missed a simple chance to put the Wallabies 9-0 up with nine minutes left.
By that time, France were a man down, replacement flanker Bernard Le Roux having been sent off for collapsing a maul.
Ironically, Les Bleus played their best rugby when undermanned, stringing together phases and rousing the crowd in the final minutes, but the Wallabies cut off that threat to claim a sixth straight win ahead of next week's final test in Sydney.
