The daring but dejected Wallabies offered no regrets after almost pulling off the upset of the year in an epic 30-29 loss to France in Paris.
The 2023 Rugby World Cup hosts and favourites had to pull out all stops to deny the Wallabies a famous victory, snatching a record 11th straight Test win with a try to winger Damien Penaud five minutes from fulltime.
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The Wallabies produced a 95-metre contender for try of the year but ultimately paid the price once more for their ill-discipline and lack of attention to detail at Stade de France.
Sharp-shooting fullback Thomas Ramos punished the Wallabies for their every infringement, nailing six penalty goals and a conversion for a telling 20-point haul.
"It's a game of inches, isn't it," rued Wallabies coach Dave Rennie.
"We got away with a tight one last week and we finished second tonight. It is what it is."
But it could have been so different.
They looked set for a famous victory at Stade de France before Penaud brushed off a couple of loose tackles from a Wallabies side that showed great maul and goal-line defence.
"Pretty shattered, if I'm honest. To lose in the fashion that we did, pretty shattered," fullback Jock Campbell said.
Even French captain Antoine Dupont expressed relief at his side's Houdini act.
"We had trouble the whole game. But we got the win and it's important to win in different ways," Dupont said.
France's 11-game winning run eclipsed Les Bleus' record from the 1930s. The streak includes a first Six Nations Grand Slam in 12 years and a 2-0 series win in Japan in July.
Heartened skipper James Slipper was seeing the glass half full after the Wallabies pack took the fight to France and the Australian backline dazzled.
The highlight was undoubtedly Lalakai Foketi's 18th-minute try.
A tap-back from Foley five metres from his own line to Len Ikitau set the magical movement in motion.
The ball spread left from Ikitau, to Campbell and Jed Holloway all the way to Wright, with the winger burning the French defence before firing a lovely inside pass to Foketi to finish off.
"I was extremely proud with how we performed tonight," Slipper said.
"As a front-row prop, it's always great to see your backline string a few passes together and run the whole field and score a try.
"We wanted to play with no fear tonight and that was a great example of that."
Foketi, though, didn't last much longer, the centre succumbing to an ankle injury that Rennie declared "significant" and potentially tour-ending.
"He'll get a scan tomorrow," Rennie said. "But it doesn't look very positive."
