The Australians dominated the first half and had a number of chances, the best of which fell to JOHN ALOISI in the 11th minute, the striker sending his shot across the goal face and just past the post..
The Coventry striker made amends early in the second half however, latching onto a pass from defender HAYDEN FOXE who had broken through the midfield, and slotting the ball into the back of the net for a 1-0 lead.
His strike partner, PAUL AGOSTINO, then almost made it 2-0 just six minutes later, capitalising on a quick counter-attack from a Kuwaiti free kick, only to see his thundering shot bounce off the cross bar.
Kuwait sparked into action late in the second half, Australian captain and goalkeeper ZELJKO KALAC called into action in the 71st minute, getting his fingertips to a strike, and managing to tip the ball onto the cross bar and to safety.
Australia's final chance fell to international debutante STUART LOVELL, who himself hit the post after beating the Kuwaiti defence, the LG Socceroos holding on for the one goal victory.
"I was quite pleased with our performance tonight, towards the end of the game we lost a bit of concentration and gave away a few chances, but in general, we were creating the chances, we hit the post a couple of times, and on the whole I thought the boys played well," said coach FRANK FARINA after the game.
"When you take into consideration that most of the boys have been in the country for less than 48 hours and had just one training session together, it's very pleasing to see the way we've adapted to the conditions.
"Our next game against South Korea will be very tough, so we'll see how everyone comes up in the wash in terms of injury, and probably undertake a light preparation to suit the very hot and humid weather conditions we're experiencing at the moment." Farina concluded.