British & Irish Lion Dan Lydiate admits Wales must learn to keep up their intensity from start to finish after a heart-wrenching defeat to South Africa last month.
Warren Gatland’s men held a 13-point advantage eight minutes before the end but watched on in horror as the Springboks turned around the deficit by 31-30 with two minutes to spare.
Nonetheless it was a remarkable turnaround for Wales, who were sorely beaten by 38-16 in the first Test the week before.
Lydiate, who played in all three Tests against Australia last summer, concedes his nation are no strangers to last-gasp losses – but has vowed to make sure the mistakes aren’t repeated again.
“It was a gutting feeling which was hard to take in,” Lydiate told Wales Online.
“When you were on the plane home it’s quite a long flight from South Africa and you are still stewing on what could have been.
“It was a similar feeling to when we played Australia in the second Test in 2012. It was that last gasp feeling of despair. Again.
“Hopefully we can learn from it. For 78 minutes of that game against South Africa, we were the better team but this shows you have to be playing for the full 80 if you want to win at the highest level.”
