James Hook is not the greatest rugby player in the Lions squad, and you wouldn't say he's the group's most assertive character, but he has something and when the Lions' 100% record looked buried on a damp and grey afternoon at Newlands, the Welsh fly-half kicked a penalty that won the match and had us shaking our heads in wonder. By hook or by crook, you might say. Well, yesterday it was by Hook.
The 23-year-old from Port Talbot only got into the Lions squad as a replacement for his compatriot Leigh Halfpenny and only got onto the field at Newlands because the Irish full-back Rob Kearney had sustained a dead leg.
The first thing he was asked to do was a routine kick into Western Province territory. He sliced it. Then, with the scores tied at 23-23, he had a long-range penalty to win the match but struck it badly.
You or I would have thrown our hat at it then; not Hook. Every breath he takes is 57% confidence. When the Lions got another long-range penalty, the fly-half Stephen Jones asked him if he wanted it. "I said, 'Yeah, it's just within my range.' I struck it well, knew the second it left my boot. It's a great feeling, only a kicker will know that feeling." It felt pretty good from Row C on the second tier of the Railway Stand.
It wasn't that Hook landed the 55-yard goal but that he struck the ball with such a sweet rhythm it would have sailed over a crossbar 10 yards further on. Why, the kid might have nailed one clean over Table Mountain and into the wind. There were only three minutes to go when Hook struck and the Lions comfortably held what had so brilliantly been given them.
Advertisement
What Hook has is a blessed innocence. He was 20 years of age when he made his debut for Wales, against Argentina at Puerto Madryn, and sitting on the bench that afternoon he kept thinking he had no right to be in such exalted company. After all, he hadn't played professional rugby at that point and his experience of serious rugby was on the thin side of non-existent.
As you'd imagine, there was an injury to a teammate and the young man about whom the rugby world knew nothing was cast into the fray. Remarkably, he felt calm, comfortable even. "It was funny because I just thought, 'This is okay, I'm fine out here.' " Same feeling when the chance came to win the game yesterday. He thought about how well he has been striking the ball in training, he reminded himself that to kick long, you don't need to kick hard. The rest was pure talent.
All the non-playing Lions were there in the dressing room to greet yesterday's winners, 'Well done, boys, you kept it going.' Five played, five won. Next. And James Hook sat in a quiet corner pleased with his afternoon's work. Well, more than that. Two months ago, his partner Kim told him she was expecting their first child. Four weeks later he gets a surprise call to the Lions and yesterday was another moment in Paradise.
And you know what? It's his birthday on the day of the second Test in Pretoria.