Stuart Lancaster insists there is more to come from England after they ended their three-Test tour of South Africa with a 14-14 draw in Port Elizabeth.
England made the better start with a recalled Danny Care going over for the first try after just ten minutes.
South Africa slowly pulled themselves back into it through the boot of Morne Steyn, but replacement Owen Farrell put England back in front 11-9 early in the second half.
On the hour the Springboks finally broke through, winger JP Pietersen going over in the corner, but Farrell’s penalty levelled things with ten minutes remaining.
England looked like they might complete a first win in South Africa since 2000 when they set up Farrell for a late drop goal but he fluffed his lines and the Red Rose had to settle for a draw.
Lancaster said: “We have mixed feelings in terms of the result. We are desperately disappointed not to have got the win. I was really pleased we improved our defensive performance from last week and I thought our mentality and mindset going into the game was strong – but we are disappointed not to have won, particularly having got into a position where we could have sneaked it.
“But credit to South Africa, they are a tough side to play at home, as everyone knows. On reflection for us, from the tour as a whole, there are a lot of positives we can take from it.”
Earlier in the day RBS 6 Nations Grand Slam champions Wales lost a third straight tight clash with Australia, going down 20-19 in Sydney.
Ryan Jones’ try on the hour looked to have sent Wales on their way but an instant response from Rob Horne followed by Berrick Barnes’ late penalty gave the Wallabies a 3-0 whitewash in the series.
Ireland also made it three defeats in as many games as they were thumped by New Zealand 60-0.
Declan Kidney’s men pushed the All Blacks all the way a week ago but were thoroughly outclassed, with debutant Sam Cane and Sonny Bill Williams grabbing two tries apiece.
Scotland completed a perfect summer tour with a late try from Rob Harley giving them a 17-16 win over Samoa.
Meanwhile France bounced back from last week’s defeat to Argentina by handing the Pumas a record home defeat 49-10 thanks to doubles from Benjamin Fall and Yoann Huget.
Finally Italy rounded off their summer tour with a 30-10 win over the USA, Kris Burton, Carlo Festuccia and Edoardo Gori with their tries.
