Leigh Halfpenny was the player of the series when the Lions defeated Australia last summer and a nominee for the International Rugby Board's player of the year, a full-back without compare in Europe and probably, given the deadly accuracy of his goal-kicking, the world. Toulon were sufficiently impressed to make him, from next season, one of the game's highest earners.
That was then. Were the Lions taking off for the southern hemisphere this summer, Halfpenny would have a strong rival for the full-back jersey, the player he will come up against at Twickenham on Sunday, England's Mike Brown, who has scored two of his side's five tries in this year's Six Nations and made another.
Brown does not kick goals, but Halfpenny started his international career on the wing and such is the England full-back's form this season – he was his side's stand-out player in the autumn internationals and has been named man of the match twice in the Six Nations – that the Lions would have to consider accommodating both. Brown was not included in the squad last year having played for England on the wing, where his impact was minimal.
"Mike Brown is a top player who has been playing consistently well for some time now," said Halfpenny. "He has got a strong attacking game, he's quick, agile and he has the ability to create something from anywhere. He is one that we are going to have to watch on Sunday: if you kick loosely to him, he has the capacity to hurt you and that is not something we want to be doing."
Brown has been a fulcrum for England in defence and attack. If there were questions about his ability to link play when he had the ball, he has more than answered them. The try he created for Danny Care in the win over Ireland, receiving an offload on halfway from Chris Robshaw and drawing two defenders before passing the ball to the scrum-half 30 metres out to give him a free run to the line, was proof of his awareness and his ability to make decisions under pressure.
Halfpenny's attacking ability has been muted in a Wales jersey in recent years. He showed in the third Lions Test last summer that he had pace and an ability to step away from defenders, but he has had few opportunities with the ball in hand this season. Wales tend to return kicks with kicks, unless there is an obvious counter-attack, while England are prepared to trust more to chance.
"There are areas that I can improve on," said Halfpenny. "I am just trying to work hard and maintain my standards while working on how to get better. Last year was a dream for me: I could never have imagined one like it. As a player you are always putting pressure on yourself to be the best you can be. Ultimately, you are trying to do a job to help your team be successful."
Wales are the only tier-one team England have failed to secure at least a draw against in the Stuart Lancaster era. The bookmakers rate the home team as the favourites on Sunday, but Wales – if the centre Jonathan Davies's recovery from injury is confirmed this week, a player they have missed in attack – will field at least 12 of the starters from their victory at Twickenham two years ago while their opponents will probably have four. When the two teams met in Cardiff a year ago, Wales took the title with a 30-3 victory.
"Wales against England is always a massive game, one that we all get excited about," said Halfpenny. "I expect a great atmosphere at Twickenham, and they are going to be hurting from the last game. They are going to come out and really bring it to us. We are going to have to be prepared for that and it is going to be a big battle.
"As for England being the favourites, we are just focusing on ourselves, doing our preparation and our homework on England. We are going to Twickenham as Six Nations champions and we are looking to defend our title. We had a disappointing defeat in Dublin but the way we responded against France reminded me of last year after we opened with a home defeat to Ireland: everyone had the desire to give everything and each player gave everything he had for his team-mates. I never felt that France were going to break us."
England are going for the triple crown on Sunday. Two years ago, Wales were holding the trophy after Scott Williams's late try gave them victory but Halfpenny was being assessed in the dressing room at the time having left the field stunned after helping deny David Strettle what could have been an equalising try at the end of the match. "It was tight all the way through the game," said Halfpenny.
"I did not remember much of the game afterwards and had to watch it back on tape. Strettle's knee caught my head as I tackled him: I knew I had to get my whole body behind it because he was coming at such a pace. It was a good half an hour before I realised we had won the triple crown.
"A big start will be important on Sunday and we have to play what is in front of us. If there are opportunities to attack, we will, but if there aren't we will go to our kicking game. Coming back into camp after the victory over France, it is clear that our confidence and momentum have picked up, just like last year when we beat them in Paris on our way to the title."
