Henry Pollock’s arcing run to the tryline in Saturday’s epic 37-24 Champions Cup semi-final win over Leinster will be remembered as one of the highlight reel moments in the history of the Investec Champions Cup.
Pollock had gone into the match against a backdrop of noise from fans and pundits alike questioning whether he could walk the walk as well as talk the talk after his try-scoring antics in the quarter-final against Castres.
With Saints down to 14 men and down by five points after Curtis Langdon was sent to the sin-bin approaching the half an hour mark, Pollock silenced the doubters and showed exactly why his ability is worth all the hype by hitting a great line and taking the ball at full pace on halfway and then rounding Sam Prendergast as if he wasn’t there.
It drew Saints level at 15-15 and prompted another celebration, the 20-year-old unashamedly pressing his forefinger and index finger to his neck as if to check his pulse right in front of the hordes of Leinster fans.
While that was a standout moment, Pollock’s all-round contribution, on both sides of the ball, was phenomenal. He was the top tackler in the game with 18, 15 of which were inside the Saints’ half, as part of their defiant rearguard action.
Andy Farrell is known to be big on players with an insatiable work-rate, and the fact that Pollock also hit the most defensive rucks in the match (21) is unlikely to have gone unnoticed ahead of Thursday’s Lions squad announcement.
