New Zealand coach Graham Henry and captain Richie McCaw hailed the defensive effort that maintained their 100% start to the Tri-Nations and retained the Bledisloe Cup.
The All Blacks mounted an uncharacteristic rearguard action to edge Australia 13-9 in front of a record 52,498 crowd in Brisbane.
'I just thought that the defensive effort was superb,' Henry said following his side's sixth straight win. 'I think it showed real character and courage.'
It was the Wallabies' first loss in seven matches at the reconstructed Suncorp Stadium, handing New Zealand the Bledisloe Cup for the fourth successive occasion.
'It [Suncorp] was a fortress for Australian rugby - I don't think they've lost here for 10 years,' Henry added.
New Zealand were far from their fluent best but repelled wave after wave of Australian attacks in a magnificent display of defensive rugby.
Battle-scarred skipper McCaw led the resistance, earning the Man of the Match award and fulsome praise from his coach.
'You can't play better than that,' Henry said. 'I thought he was the outstanding individual player of the game.'
McCaw deflected any personal glory onto the team, saying the defensive display was 'right up there'.
'It was a display that showed that defence wins Test matches,' he added.
'I was pretty proud of the guys, the way they dug deep - they had to. All the guys are absolutely out on their feet. Those last few minutes, we had to dig pretty deep, but it makes it all worthwhile.'
Joe Rokocoko scored the sole try of the match after 10 minutes before Australia came into the ascendancy.
