Wales star proves class is permanent in major Gatland boost after torrid 12 months
Thirty-nine seconds into his comeback from injury at the end of November, Josh Adams momentarily took his eyes off a pass from Callum Sheedy and spilled it forward.
After six months on the sidelines, the rust was there for all to see. And yet, less than an hour later, the Wales wing was showing signs of his best.
Forty-two minutes in to the URC clash with the Dragons at the Arms Park, the 2021 Lions tourist took the outside, leaving Wales team-mate Rio Dyer in his wake, to help set up Sheedy's score.
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That was the moment that Cardiff coach Matt Sherratt knew the 29-year-old was showing the early signs of match sharpness.
It was, of course, just a precursor for things to come. In the three matches since, Adams has dotted down four times.
Heading into 2025, Adams is finally enjoying some respite after a torrid 12 months. His woes began last December, when he crossed twice in a Anglo-Welsh humdinger against Bath in the Champions Cup.
The second of those scores came in a manner that few other than Adams could have managed. After Tomos Williams hacked forward a loose ball, the wing nudged the ball forward while at full pelt with his thigh, before regathering to score.
Typically, he is fairly self-effacing about the quality of the try. "I think Finn Russell was chasing me back so I'd have been disappointed if I didn't get to the ball," he said back in November. "I'd be having a word with myself if a outside-half beat me to it."
However, modesty aside, that try - his last of the 2023/24 season - would have far-reaching consequences for Adams. While scoring, he damaged a blood vessel in his leg, which would affect him in the weeks and months to come.
"Tommy whacked it through, I've run and caught it and as I've landed, all the weight went through the knee," he said about the injury. "It not something that hasn't happened to me before, so you think nothing of it.
"But when you get up, you can tell something's not right. Then, as you carry on, moving it and opening up is when it got bigger and you realise something's not right."
That injury meant he spent this year's Six Nations having to constantly drain his knee, as it kept on filling up with blood. Such was the impact on his game, he posted on social media after the Six Nations that it had been "difficult" to "really get going this campaign", adding that he "stopped backing myself" and his "confidence hasn’t been great".
Even when back with Cardiff after a winless Six Nations, Adams found himself having to play through injury - a testament to his commitment to the cause. In the nine matches following that Bath game, Adams didn't cross the whitewash once.
"Rarely are any of us 100 per cent because it's a hard game," he said earlier in the season. "You're always carrying something.
"It depends what you're carrying when it comes to whether it limits you. I'm used to playing with niggles.
"No team in the league would have a starting XV otherwise. But I didn't feel I had that power through the right leg. The range in my knee was limited, with the compression and strapping. You need some WD40 in there just to get it going again."
A summer off from Wales duty - something of a novelty for the 59-cap wing - has helped him recover, although a hernia issue prolonged his return to playing.
However, in recent weeks, Cardiff have seen the best of a fully-fit Adams. In 2025, the hope will be Wales will too.
"He is all in for us," said Sherratt. "I love seeing him at the end of the game for us in terms of how emotive he is.
"You are talking about somebody who has played in World Cups and for the British and Irish Lions and he is so engaged with our group.
"He has shown all of his attributes in terms of his resilience and ability to be 100% in games. He has that bit of match sharpness at the moment and has looked dangerous."
Take his try against the Dragons on Boxing Day. From a scrum, the winger stays hidden on the inside of Ben Thomas - right up until he cuts a line outside the Wales centre to scythe through the Dragons defence.
From there, he still has work to do, stepping Jared Rosser to score a superb score. But the try is made by the hard line of Rey Lee-Lo, as well as how Adams stays hidden right up until the last moment.
If the strike-move looks familiar, that's because Cardiff ran it against the Dragons weeks earlier - when they put Adams on the outside against Dyer for Sheedy's try. That time, Adams tracks across as Cardiff target the edge - perhaps the Gwent side were expecting similar at Rodney Parade.
That a man who was top try-scorer at the 2019 World Cup possessed such quality probably shouldn't be a surprise to no one. But the game moves fast and players are only ever one poor performance away from being condemned.
More than a few probably looked beyond the injuries Adams has been dealing with in the last year and reach for the hottest take they can muster. But, as he's shown in the last few weeks, class is permanent.
Here's hoping 2025 allows him to show that on a more regular basis.
