Hook’s twenty-two point haul ensured Gareth Jenkins’s men broke their Championship duck in their final game of the Championship campaign. It was also Jenkins’s first victory over a major test nation since being appointed last summer in what was a memorable win against the old enemy.
A remarkable game to end the 2007 RBS Six Nations tournament saw Hook and Chris Horsman cross for first half tries. Although England came back into the game, it was Hook who kept his nerve and made sure of victory by booting Wales to the win in the second half.
Hook, who was moved from centre to fly half in place of injured skipper Stephen Jones, made a dream start when he scored the game’s opening try after just under two minutes on the clock. Opposite number Toby Flood saw Hook chargedown his attempted clearance before collecting and scoring to the delight of the home support. The Ospreys star added the extras and his impact on the game continued when he slotted over a long-range penalty moments later to make it 10-0.
In a frantic opening quarter, Wales threatened to blow England away when they crossed for their second try. Shane Williams led the counter-attack before the ball was recycled and found its way to prop Chris Horsman who burrowed over for his first Wales try. Hook’s conversion rattled the woodwork and bounced out but Wales still held a commanding fifteen point buffer.
England’s frustrations were clear and Martin Corry was fortunate to escape with just a ticking off from referee Alain Rolland after appearing to strike a Welsh opponent. The home side continued to dominate and Hook saw his dropped goal sail narrowly wide as they looked to add to their lead. Yet despite Wales’s super performance, England were still not out of the match and against the run of play they scored a try of their own.
Mike Catt’s searing run and chip ahead saw the bounce kindly into the hands of Harry Ellis who crossed underneath the posts. Flood added the extras before making further inroads with his dropped goal to reduce the deficit to just five points. Hook then scored his second penalty before Jason Robinson finished off Ellis’s break to race in the corner for an unconverted try to make it 18-15 to the hosts at the end of a pulsating first half.
England suffered a blow moments into the second half when Captain Catt limped off and was replaced by the highly rated Shane Geraghty. He was immediately in the thick of things as his chip kick ahead saw a scrambling Wales defence penalised and Flood drew the teams level.
The pace of the game had visibly shown but Wales continued on the front foot as they aimed to restore their advantage. Wales blew a great try-scoring chance on fifty-four minutes when Mark Jones just failed to collect Kevin Morgan’s pass after the fullback broke through the English defence.
Hook was left frustrated after his forty metre penalty bounced back off the posts as the game entered the final quarter. He wasn’t to be denied with his next effort as he made no mistake with his simple penalty attempt in front of the posts to make it 21-18. Welsh pressure continued and the outstanding Hook added a quick fire drop goal to give the home side some breathing space with a six point lead.
With the Red Rose needing to claw themselves back into the game, errors continued to mount up and it was that man Hook who made them pay with a 72nd minute penalty.
