Does the postman get thanked for delivering letters?

SOMETIMES it takes a shortage to appreciate water. Or a power blackout to get the fundamental importance of electricity.

The malfunctioning Wallaby goal-kicking in Brisbane last Saturday only underscored the value of Leigh Halfpenny. I don’t think people appreciate how wonderfully well the Lions goal-kicker has done in Australia. It is all well and good having impressive kicking stats and momentum going into the game, but you start from scratch in a Test match. Halfpenny delivered and the Lions won. Kurtley Beale and James O’Connor didn’t, Australia lost.

One of the best quotes I’ve heard in sport came from his kicking coach Neil Jenkins: the postman doesn’t get thanked for delivering letters. Jenkins would compartmentalise his role on the team. I’m there to deliver the goal-kicks for the team. That now applies to his protégé. I adopted it myself as a kicking mindset: don’t be making it into something it isn’t. This is my job, split the uprights every time. What’s the big deal?