Martyn Williams column

By Martyn Williams Wales and Lions flanker

There were a few sore heads in our team hotel on Sunday morning but no-one was complaining.

We had had a great night out in Johannesburg, celebrating our win at Ellis Park at the end of a fantastic tour. It was a pretty chaotic night and let's just say we were out until the early hours.

It was great to be able to let our hair down and enjoy ourselves at the end of a long, hard season. Needless to say, it wouldn't have been so much fun if we had been whitewashed in the series.

Mike has been absolutely phenomenal on this tour and I reckon he would do well in the back row as well if he had to

That would have been really hard on the lads, because we've put so much into this tour and come desperately close to winning the series.

It would have been easy to let our intensity levels slip for the final Test after losing the first two games but we maintained our performance levels and the credit for that has to go to the coaches and our captain Paul O'Connell.

Paul has been absolutely immense on this tour and is the best captain I have ever worked with. The way he has handled himself in the last week of the tour speaks volumes about the man.

He spoke to the group on Friday night, telling us what the final Test meant to him and what an honour it had been for him to play for the Lions.

Paul told us our performance in the game would leave a legacy for the next four years. It was real hairs-on-the-back-of-the-neck stuff.

I don't think Paul gets the credit he deserves. When you play with or against him you realise just how good a player he is.

He does all the unglamorous work at close quarters and has an unbelievable engine. People in the stands don't necessarily see that.

As a captain, he is absolutely inspirational - we all have so much respect for him.

Saturday's game was one of the toughest I have ever been involved in. We had altitude to contend with, it was a wide open game and it was quite niggly.

To be fair, I was involved in a lot of that because it's part of your job as an open-side flanker.

I thought my opposite number, Heinrich Brussow, was outstanding and he's been a real find for the Springboks in this series.

The tenacious Brussow had a good series for the Springboks

We had quite a tussle; there was one moment in the second half when he picked me up and threw me on the floor.

The Boks had been awarded a penalty and I was lying on the floor with the ball between my legs. Brussow didn't like that.

Then Pierre Spies got hold of me. He's absolutely huge and if I'd fought back, there would have only been one winner!

It was a feisty end to a full-on Test series, which is what everyone wants to see.

While we're talking about the game, I've got to pay tribute to my Wales team-mate Mike Phillips, who showed what a class player he is again.

It was pretty incredible to see him switch from scrum-half to centre for the last 30 minutes and do so well.

Maybe you would see someone do that in a local club game, but not a Test match. Mike has been absolutely phenomenal on this tour and I reckon he would do well in the back row as well if he had to.

After the game we had a really good function with the South African boys, which was the first time we've been able to get together with them.

After the first two Tests it was back to the hotel by six or seven o'clock. This time we had a formal dinner followed by a few beers with the South Africa team

John Smit spoke brilliantly at the dinner, saying the series could have gone either way. What a class act.

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John, Victor Matfield and Bryan Habana each made a point of coming round and talking to all of our lads. They are absolute gentlemen.

People said there was needle between the teams but I think that was overplayed. We were both desperate to win and there were no hard feelings at the end of the series.

You could say we were unlucky to lose the series - and there would be some truth in that - but credit to the Boks, because they came up with the goods at the crucial times. They are world champions for a reason.

This is my third Lions tour and it has been the most memorable of them all by far.

Just to be involved in all three Test matches was an absolute privilege, because there are guys in our squad who have worked as hard as me and not had an opportunity to even be in the 22.

We fly home on Monday and then I'm off to the South of France with my family. It will be lovely to have a rest and get away from rugby for a bit, but I'll never forget this tour.

Martyn Williams was speaking to BBC Sport's Simon Austin