Leigh Halfpenny remembers 2013 like it was yesterday.
It has now been 12 years since he was crowned Player of the Series as The British & Irish Lions powered to a series victory over Australia, winning the deciding third Test 41-16 in Sydney.
The first two Tests had gone down to the wire, with Kurtley Beale missing a penalty to win the first before Halfpenny was off-target in similar fashion in the second.
But despite being close for an hour, the Lions were able to stretch clear in the decider, giving Halfpenny the rare opportunity to stand back and appreciate just what they had achieved.
He recalls: “It feels like it’s gone pretty quickly. It doesn’t feel like that long ago that we were in Australia. Coming away with a series win was pretty special.
“It was incredible, the support we had and the fans we had on that Tour. You would look around and see the Sea of Red. That is the special thing about the Lions, all four countries coming together as one.
“It’s not often in a Test match that you have an opportunity to have a look around but I think in that third Test, there was an opportunity towards the end to look around and take it all in. It was an incredible feeling to have won that series. To go down there and achieve that with such a special group of people was amazing.
“My family came over and a few friends from back home. To see them after the game and on the Sunday and share it with them amongst all the players was pretty special.”
That Tour was Halfpenny’s second with the Lions, having previously been a surprise inclusion for the 2009 Tour to South Africa at just 20 years of age.
That fulfilled a lifelong ambition for the Welshman, who had come through the ranks at Gorseinon.
“It was a privilege and an honour to represent the Lions, something that I dreamt of as a kid,” said Halfpenny, speaking at an event hosted by LooseHeadz, an Official Charity Partner of The Lions Trust.
“The DVDs the Lions put out, the 2001 Tour to Australia was one that I watched over and over as a kid.
“To have been selected for 2009 was beyond my wildest dreams. I’d never expected it, it was a huge honour, a really proud moment.
“On reflection, I never expected it at the beginning of that season. To ride up to Pennyhill Park and look at the squad, to be surrounded by so many incredible players, players I had watched growing up, I was pretty starstruck to be honest.
“From 2001 growing up and watching that Tour in Australia, watching Brian O’Driscoll. He was phenomenal so to meet him was great, I was pretty starstruck. But it gave me a taste of the Lions and how special it was and what it really meant.”
Four years on and Halfpenny had established himself as one of the key members of a Wales team that won back-to-back Six Nations titles, finishing as the top points scorer in the tournament as they won the Grand Slam in 2012.
He again finished top of the points charts in 2013, kicking four penalties in the 30-3 win over England that swung the title Wales’s way, with a number of Lions selections no doubt influenced by that match.
While his inclusion in 2009 was relatively unexpected, by 2013, Halfpenny went into the Tour as a possible Test starter, even if he never saw it that way.
“You never assume or take it for granted,” he said. “The competition on the Tours is phenomenal, you’ve got the best from each country so it’s just about taking each game at a time. When you get the opportunity to play and wear the jersey, you want to do the jersey proud and do it justice.
“To be involved in Test matches was very special. When they read out the team for the Test, I couldn’t believe it to be honest. It’s something you dream of as a kid. I called my family straightaway to tell them the news.
“I’ve always had the nerves before games. That was no different. You try to use it in the right way, channel it and use it help your performance. But I was pretty nervous running out. To have the responsibility of goal-kicking was huge for me. I feel very fortunate to have had Neil Jenkins coaching me from a young age and having him on the Tour was pretty special.”
Once he arrived in Australia, Halfpenny made an immediate impression, making 11 shots at goal out of 11 in a 24-point haul against the Western Force in the first game on Australian soil.
Selection for the Tests was vindicated as Halfpenny kicked 13 points in the opening 23-21 win in Brisbane, while he scored all the Lions points in the 17-15 second Test defeat in Melbourne – with a final kick from more than 50 metres out to clinch the series falling just short.
That only served to make the final Test victory sweeter, with three tries in 10 second-half minutes taking the game away from the Wallabies, and allowing Halfpenny to bask in the success.
He said: “As a kid growing up, dreaming about playing for Wales and the Lions. To have been given that opportunity, I’m hugely grateful.
“It was tight for a long period of that third Test. You’ve just got to try to stay in the fight and focus on your next job and not think too far ahead. We had incredible leaders running the game.
“We were able to score a few good tries which took the game out of reach for Australia. It was pretty tense for a lot of the game, so to be able to pull away towards the end, it was just relief. There was elation to have won a series with an incredible group of people, staff, players, off-field. To celebrate with those people on the field was special.”
Now retired from international rugby, Halfpenny is playing his club rugby for Harlequins after joining last summer and he has already made plans to be part of the Sea of Red this time around.
He added: “I’m looking forward to going back to Australia, looking forward to the Tour, it’s going to be really exciting. They have been playing well so it’s setting up well to be an exciting Tour.”
