Left: Barrett
puts the All
Blacks ahead in
the final Lions
Test that ended
in a 15-15 draw.
A
s he places the ball on the turf,
Beauden Barrett can feel his heart
hammering inside his chest. He
takes a long, deep breath and
tries to ignore it. He tries not to
consider the magnitude of this
penalty kick. With just over 10 minutes left on
the clock, the All Blacks are tied 12-apiece in
the series decider against the British & Irish
Lions. It’s descended into a brutal match of
beserk intensity. Now, this is the endgame.
Barrett takes five steps backwards and
stares at the ball. He tries not to think of how this
clash of the hemispheres only happens
every 12 years. He tries not to notice
how, is it just him, or have the stadium
floodlights suddenly gone hyper-
bright? He tries not to dwell on how the
All Blacks haven’t lost a single game at
Eden Park for 23 years. Or that, right now, four
million New Zealanders are desperately
watching his every move, imploring the All
Blacks to prevail. Most of all, Barrett tries to blot
out that he’s already shanked two of his kicks
wide tonight.
Instead Barrett sets himself to channel the
pressure into action. He takes a deep breath
and exhales. He looks up at the posts – so
white against the night sky – and narrows his
focus. All his concentration is trained on the
contact point between boot and ball. Barrett
takes yet another breath. Then he strokes the
ball cleanly through the posts.
