Captain Phil Vickery hailed James Hook after his late penalty saw the Lions beat Western Province 26-23.
Captain praises match-winner after emotional day
British and Irish Lions captain Phil Vickery hailed hero James Hook after his late penalty kept up the tourists' unbeaten record in South Africa.
The second-half substitute landed a 50-metre kick in blustery conditions to see the Lions beat Western Province 26-23.
The tourists had earlier scored three tries through Tommy Bowe, Ugo Monye and Martyn Williams, but Western Province fought back from 18-9 down to set up a thrilling finish.
A relieved Vickery said: "Credit to James. As soon as you saw the contact he made, you knew he had the distance.
"It was a great honour to captain the Lions and I am just pleased the guys pulled it through. Western Province fought to the very end. They never gave up, as you would expect.
"The only thing that bothered me was winning the game. It was about making sure of that. We had to go out and win that game. We didn't get it all our own way, and it says a huge amount.
"A week today is the reason why we are here - a Test match - and I just hope we go out and do ourselves justice."
Vickery admitted the occasion had got to him.
"To be honest it was quite an emotional day today because '98 was the last time I was here on the so-called 'tour of hell'," he said.
"I remember that day, it doesn't seem like so long ago, so coming back here and being asked to be captain of the Lions is the most emotional thing I've ever done.
"I was thinking before the game, the older you get you're not supposed to get as nervous, it's supposed to get easier, but [the pressure of being captain] was one of the hardest things today."
Coetzee reaction
Western Province coach Allister Coetzee believed his side had lost to quality opposition.
"When you lose a game it is not the result you want, obviously," he said. "We got close, but two or three mistakes near the end cost us.
"I was fairly happy with the physicality of our team. The perception was that Western Province were a bit soft in the forwards, but we fronted up well.
"You are playing against a pack that has got close to 350 Test caps. All credit to the Lions pack, they came at us in the scrum, which showed their experience.
"The Lions are improving every week, they are a quality outfit. The Lions have improved in every game they've played. They know how to pick up the tempo and it is going to be one hell of a Test series coming up.
"I am looking forward to it. It will be interesting to see how the Springboks handle the Lions' rush defence - it is two real quality sides matching up."
Western Province captain Luke Watson added: "The occasion of Western Province being able to play against the Lions was awesome.
"We have always known the Lions would have a great physical presence, which is a great tribute to northern hemisphere rugby.
"They have the ability to match the Springboks up front, so the first Test will be very interesting. Their rush defence rattles your cage and it is very difficult to get around it.
"It can put you on the back foot and the Springboks will have to take that into consideration."
