Saracens 24 South Africa 23

THE smiles were back and promises kept as the 2009 British and Irish Lions produced the performance of this South African tour to emphatically avoid a whitewash at Ellis Park, Johannesburg on Saturday with a victory that highlighted just how unlucky they were to lose the three-game Test series.

SPRINGBOKS coach Peter de Villiers yesterday accused sections of the British and Irish Lions travelling press of trying to whip up unnecessary controversy during the current tour.

South Africa 53 Australia 8

South Africa 63 Argentina 9