British and Irish Lions Left To Lick Their Wounds

(Photo by Duif du Toit/Gallo Images/Getty Images)

Worse was to come as the influential Jamie Roberts followed his centre partner Brian O’Driscoll off the field, forcing stand-off Stephen Jones to move to inside-centre, and wing Tommy Bowe to slot into the 13 channel.

Ronan O’Gara came on at Fly-half, but it was to prove a desperately disappointing cameo for the Irishman.

First, it was his missed tackle which allowed Jacques Fourie to squeeze in at the corner and give the Sprinkboks the lead for the first time in the match and secondly, with his head strapped and barely able to see out of one eye, he hoisted an up-and-under with the scores at 25-25 in the last play of the match, instead of looking for the safety of touch.

Chasing his own kick, he only succeeded in taking out South African scrum-half Fourie Du-Preez in the air, providing Steyn with the chance to write himself into the history books and exact revenge for 12 years of hurt.

For a man who has had such success throughout his career, guiding Munster to European glory and Ireland to a Grand-Slam triumph, to have made such a costly error in what was surely the biggest game of his career is a very heavy burden.

The anguish was clear to see on his battered face following the final whistle, and one could not help but feel desperately sorry for a man who had nowhere to hide, and who will struggle to ever forget the closing events of this compelling Test match.

Nobody epitomized the Lions’ spirit more than Simon Shaw, making his Test debut at the age of 35.

The Wasps second-row was everywhere, seemingly untouched by fatigue or pain as he repeatedly smashed into rucks and tackles, and he was deservedly awarded Man of the Match.

Yet, as he himself admitted, that is little consolation. A massive opportunity has been missed by these players and the harsh facts remain that this was a seventh straight Test defeat for the men from Britain and Ireland.

“No one actually thought we were going to be competitive," McGeechan noted. "But we have been more than that. In both games we have been winners in a lot of respects."

Maybe, but unfortunately for the Lions and their marvelous fans, not on the scoreboard.

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