Michael Cheika says the Wallabies are ready to step up to the challenge of meeting the All Blacks in Perth in a fortnight after notching just their third Rugby Championship win in the past eight games against Argentina at Suncorp Stadium.
The Wallabies held on for a 16-10 win over the Pumas, conceding a late try to have a few nervous moments before the final whistle despite a largely dominant performance.
It was a stark turnaround from last week's sloppy showing against the Springboks in South Africa and one they need to improve on again if they are a chance to compete with the All Blacks, who played out a 16-16 draw with South Africa in Wellington as the Wallabies prepared to take the field.
But Cheika believes his players are more than capable of making the leap.
"(We'll take) as big a step as we want to take," he said.
"It's up to us. It's (going to be) the step that we're prepared to take.
"We're prepared to go up another, I don't know how many levels it might take, but whatever it is, it's about whether we want to take a step up and whether we will take a step up to go and compete there."
Captain Michael Hooper said the victory was a reward for players and staff after a torrid period.
"These guys - staff as well - we've all been putting in big shifts and you just need a little bit of a pat on the back sometimes in the form of a win to show what you can do and paint a bit of a picture of what your week looks like to add to that result," Hooper said.
"We'll be looking to add to that and get better. I think we've got so much more to grow on and off the field."
Cheika said the win had been important for the 31,559 fans that had turned out to Suncorp Stadium on Saturday night, the biggest crowd for an Argentina Test in Australia outside the World Cup.
He expected the same level of support for the sold out Bledisloe clash in Perth, where the Wallabies will balance the need to build momentum with just three Tests remaining before their first World Cup fixture, with the need to continue to audition players.
That call will be made by the selection panel but Cheika said any player in the 23 would be "ready to go" against New Zealand.
"What I'm seeing in the way that the guys are going about their business is you had a lot of guys play their first game tonight and saw that they were very committed in what they brought, there was no lack of effort on the field," he said.
"I think anyone that comes in, whether they've played games or they haven't, they'll be ready to go and try to build on that momentum. We know how difficult that task will be but I really believe in these players.
"Just the environment they're creating at the moment amongst themselves - nothing to do with us - will help them down the line to achieve bigger things than they thought they could earlier on in the year."
It may not have been the most comprehensive victory of all time but the win was just the tonic the Wallabies needed as they attempt to get their World Cup campaign on track.
In front of 31,559 fans, the biggest crowd for a Test against Argentina in Australia outside the Rugby World Cup, the Wallabies notched a crucial, if at times, dour, win against the strongest Pumas team to hit Australian soil in years.
While they remain guilty of simple errors and squandering hard fought for chances in attack, the Wallabies' defence was near impenetrable for the first 70 minutes.
But they were suddenly on the back foot in the final minutes after no.8 Facundo Isa crossed from a driving maul following an 11-man lineout, with the conversion allowing the visitors to claw within a converted try in the final minutes.
Having won just 12 of their past 16 Tests coming into the match and only two of their last seven games in The Rugby Championship, the Wallabies were desperate to turn the tide ahead of the World Cup.
Keen to give players a chance to impress ahead of the World Cup, the Wallabies made several changes to their backline but they suffered little - in the first 60 minutes at least - with Will Genia, Christian Lealiifano and Kurtley Beale creating plenty.
Things became sloppy in the final 20 minutes as wholesale changes were made from the bench, although the performance of Taniela Tupou and James Slipper when they were injected in the second half was outstanding, the Australian scrum dominating the vaunted Pumas pack.
"I want to keep building there. I'm pleased but I want to be more pleased, if that's a reasonable thing to say, I think we have a lot of potential there," Cheika said of the set piece dominance.
"These are key areas of the game where in tournament play in particular they count for a lot. Yes, tonight was good, we built on last week but we want to keep building when we get to the next game."
Argentinian coach Mario Ledesma said he had been "surprised" by the Wallabies' dominance given the scrum was usually such an area of strength for his side.
"It's almost weird, we were pretty clinical in lineouts and our scrum was good last week," he said.
"opportunities were there ... and we lost the game by six points (but) my concern was much more the set piece."
Lealiifano's return after fighting back from leukaemia was inspirational, but it was Genia, playing his final Test at Suncorp Stadium after more appearances there than any other man in Test history, who dominated.
The former Reds halfback won player of the match honours and showed why he remains the undisputed starting halfback despite Nic White's strong showing against South Africa.
Winger Marika Koroibete was another who impressed after being slotted in for Dane Haylett-Petty, his workrate and enthusiasm in both attack and defence all but guaranteeing his World Cup spot.
Captain Michael Hooper was pleased with the effort, especially with the Wallabies testing new systems ahead of the World Cup.
"I think it was a really exciting game, both teams in it until the end," he said.
"We held them right out there, until the (74th) minute, against a team that can really put on a show in attack, so our commitment in defence was great.
"I was really pleased with how we grew in attack.
"We're building nicely and gaining momentum here going into the next couple of weeks."
They need to be able to convert on their chances if they are to trouble the All Blacks though, with the Wallabies still guilty of too many handling errors, something coach Michael Cheika conceded after the match.
Lealiifano opened the scoring the 11th minute following a penalty for Argentinian hands in the ruck but had few other scoring opportunities despite creating plenty of half chances.
They created the best chances of the half though, Izack Rodda running a good line to take a ball from Will Genia before the movement ultimately broke down with a handling error.
The Wallabies showed great intent in attack, looking to run the ball at every opportunity, but simple errors continued to cruel their efforts.
"I thought the real blemishes might have been our handling," Cheika said.
"I think even with the dewy conditions we want to hold on to more of those opportunities because we created a heap, especially in that first 50-60 minutes."
And they were made to pay midway through the term, with Argentina levelling the scores after Nicolas Sanchez converted a chance following a Sekope Kepu penalty for offside.
They had another chance just minutes later when Tevita Kuridrani was penalised for running an escort for Kurtley Beale under the high ball but played on quickly and turned over the ball.
The Wallabies broke the deadlock when Reece Hodge scored late in the half following a nicely worked scrum move in which Christian Lealiifano found Marika Koroibete on the fly before the ball was spread wide, with the conversion giving Australia a 10-3 lead at the break.
Michael Cheika has talked about building momentum in games and the Wallabies did just that in the second half, extending their lead early through a penalty conversion after the Pumas conceded a scrum penalty.
Lealiifano banged another over after 50 minutes, extending the lead to 16-3 before leaving the field, with Matt To'omua coming on at flyhalf.
A late try to Isa put pressure on the Wallabies but they held firm to seal the win.
RESULT
WALLABIES 16
Tries: Reece Hodge
Cons: Christian Lealiifano
Pens: Lealiifano 3
ARGENTINA 10
Tries: Facundo Isa
Cons: Joaquin Diaz Bonilla
Pens: Nicolas Sanchez
