“It was hard after the game, I was pretty down. It was really tough,” Halfpenny said. “I had the chance to win it for the Lions and I didn’t take it. That is what all the hard work is for, for moments like that. I was devastated at not being able to do it.
“It was touch and go, that kick. I felt if I connected with it I would make it, but I didn’t connect and it took me a few days to shake it off.
“But we had another chance, and people made that clear to me we had another chance. Not often in sport do you get a second chance. I had to put it behind me, but I also used the experience. I didn’t want to feel like that again.
“I used it as a motivation because the disappointment can stay with you. I wanted to be a part of a Lions series win, and it helped me today. I’ve worked harder and harder in training, and today it all paid off.”
Halfpenny also equalled the number of penalties by a Lions player in a Test series, the Welshman matching Jenkins’s total in 1997, while he finished with an overall goal-kicking record on tour of 89 per cent, kicking a superb 40 out of 45 attempts at goal.
Halfpenny, who was forced to return home at the early stages of the tour of South Africa four years ago, said that this record-breaking series victory would remain with him forever.
“The contrast in dressing rooms after games can always be extreme,” he said. “Last week was as low as I ever want to feel, but this is just incredible.
“I had the chance to win it in Melbourne – we had the chance to kill it there. We weren’t able to do that, and it was a case of picking ourselves up and dusting ourselves off.
“As a kid you have a dream of pulling on a Lions jersey. But I never dreamt of anything like this.
“To play like that and win like that is something that will live with me forever. It’s amazing to be a part of a Lions Test series win.
“It’s why you work so hard, for moments like today. We played so well, but we always felt we had that kind of performance in us.
“We have supported each other as a squad from the start, and we’ve all worked hard. We are delighted with this – we’ve made history.”
No comments:
Post a Comment