Donal Lenihan in Pretoria: Spicy on the highveld, with a couple of unfortunate Lowes

Ireland found admirable resolve to hang in there against the world champions, offering something concrete to build on for one last gigantic effort in a never-ending season in Durban next Saturday

OVER: Ireland's Jamie Osborne goes over for a brilliantly-worked try before the break in the first test at Loftus Versfeld in Pretoria. Pic: Dan Sheridan, Inpho

There’s something prickly in the thin air here on the Pretorian highveld. On the two previous occasions I witnessed test match rugby at Loftus Versfeld, both were incredibly physical, incredible nasty affairs.

On the only occasion Ireland played here before - the infamous Battle of Pretoria in 1998 - I came to appreciate for the first time just how belligerent the Springboks become when their patch is threatened.