THE MATADOR MOMENT

sends out a pass to Liam Williams, who is standing barely 10 metres from his own line. WILLIAMS initially seems to consider putting in a touchfinder but instead checks and steps past Kieran Read, leaving the All Blacks captain to sail past him and curse himself.

It’s Eden Park in Auckland rather than Plaza de Toros Las Ventas in Madrid and there are no reports of anyone shouting “ole!”, but if Williams had swished a red cape in front of Read it would have not have looked out of place. Summarising for Sky Sports, Stuart Barnes later talked of “the matador moment”. FOR a brief moment we are transported back to the Life on Mars year of 1973 and a Welshman counterattacking wondrously against the All Blacks. That day in Cardiff 44 years ago, Phil Bennett took out a third of the New Zealand side with three slashing sidesteps, launching a move for the Barbarians that ended with Gareth Edwards crossing at the other end of the pitch.

Now it was another player with Scarlets connections, Williams, who was showing the world he could run.

He starts to head left square across the pitch at first, before seeing an opening and straightening up dramatically. A hint of a hand-off propels him clear of Cruden and leaves Sonny Bill Williams clutching thin air as well. Suddenly there is daylight in front of the Welshman.

He would still probably need binoculars to see the opposition try line, but he starts motoring forward and Sean O’Brien follows him. JONATHAN Davies and Elliot Daly have also spotted the possibilities and the crowd are now roaring.

Williams makes it to the halfway before being halted by Israel Dagg.

But, crucially, the full-back who has been schooled in Scarlets traditions sends out an offload.

The Kiwis know there’s big trouble as Davies collects the ball and steers clear of Anton Lienert-Brown, eventually finding Daly.

The Englishman is close to the touchline but tries to buy himself space by heading in and then moving outside Lienert-Brown, just about evading the tackle. Davies has continued his run and has only Barrett to beat, but the New Zealander is well used to playing at full-back and makes a decent job of defending.

Davies commits him, though, by going in and out, as Daly had done to Lienert-Brown, as Barrett makes the tackle. But there is still life in the move. Rather than die with the ball, the centre turns in contact and with his back to the try line flings out an offload. SEAN O’Brien, meantime, has been tracking play in the manner of all top flankers.

He has sprinted more than 85 metres and so his lungs must be burning. But he is there now and he isn’t going to waste this opportunity. He opens his hands to gleefully accept possession and make the two yards more he needs to travel to the tryline. Aaron Smith despairingly clings to his ankles, but O’Brien dives over.

In commentary, Barnes says: “That is one of the great Lions Test tries.”

It has taken 22 seconds from the moment Watson came into possession to the point when O’Brien touched down.

Just maybe it will give the Lions a sliver of hope for the remainder of the series.