Ireland captain Rory Best has admitted that second-half mistakes cost his side the chance of a historic Test series victory in South Africa.
Joe Schmidt's men looked to be in control of the second Test in Johannesburg after Devin Toner scored to give the tourists a 19-3 lead, but the Springboks mounted a stirring comeback to win 32-26.
After the game at Ellis Park, Best also suggested that South Africa were gifted the chance to build momentum in the latter stages.
He told SuperSport: "We put ourselves in a great position to win the game and the series, but we'll look back on a lot of mistakes in the second half.
"We gave South Africa momentum and they showed the quality side they are.
"We were very physical for the first 50 or 60 minutes and did everything we had talked about doing. Even when we were conceding tries, we went up and scored again and that showed a lot of mental resolve from our boys."
Ireland won the opening Test in Cape Town last Saturday, despite having played much of that game with 14 men.
Chris O'Keefe
