As second-row partnerships go, the one between Alun Wyn Jones and Maro Itoje seems the stuff of fantasy.
But then, that's largely what the Lions is about.
Bringing together players who'd never usually play with each other and letting them shine on the biggest stage.
That was the case in 2017 and, despite numerous set-backs, it's the case in 2021.
The pair were crucial to Warren Gatland's tourists getting themselves off to the perfect start in the Test series against the world champion Springboks.
Having watched them back over the 80 minutes from a wide angle camera from behind the posts, the effect the duo have on the pitch is much easier to behold.
Here's some snippets of what Jones and Itoje did well as a pairing...
A DEFENSIVE BALANCE
In truth, the pair didn't do a great deal with ball in hand, making just 12 metres between them in 10 carries.
However, that's neither here nor there given how the Lions played in the 80 minutes, largely playing a kick-based territory game - with the explosive carriers of Courtney Lawes, Jack Conan and Luke Cowan-Dickie doing the work in the tight when they did go through the phases.
Much of the work done by the second-rows was about surviving the green and gold onslaught.
And, on the other side of the ball, Itoje and Jones worked nicely in tandem.
Early on in proceedings, Boks second-row Eben Etzebeth carries into the pair of them off Faf de Klerk.
It's a simple play off nine, with the South African scrum-half just looking to improve the angle to find touch off his left boot.
However, Etzebeth's carry is too upright and he's stopped in his tracks by the pair.
The sight of them working closely together, often stood in the B and C defender slots, was a key feature.
The work of Jones in the tackle often allowed Itoje to peel off the contact and remain on his feet, keeping him in the game for longer.
On one such occasion as the Springboks chased the Lions' narrow lead, Itoje does just that - breaking off the tackle once Jones soaks up the contact.
A couple of phases later and Itoje, free to move around, is able to fold around when South Africa find some space and quick ball.
The Boks actually make a half-break around the 13 channel before losing it in contact trying to force an offload, but were Itoje not there as an inside defender, that chance becomes a lot easier for the hosts.
However, even when working further apart, they were still to the fore in their defensive duties.
On this occasion in the first-half, Itoje is stood at the ruck as the pillar, with Jack Conan outside him as his post.
Further infield, Jones is defending in the line.
From the ruck, the South African front-row show some delicate hands to play a perfectly-timed tip-on pass.
That takes Tadhg Furlong out of the game and leaves Courtney Lawes scrambling to stop the half-break.
Lawes does make the tackle and Conan and Itoje work across.
Conan folds around, while Itoje spots a chance for a jackal.
Getting over the ball, the England star does a brilliant job of slowing things down, with Jones already organising the defensive line as the Lions scramble.
Even though Itoje doesn't get the turnover, by the time the Springboks have clean ball, the Lions' defensive line is set.
As a result, Jones is able to read the relatively telegraphed play from the Boks and hit his man behind the gainline.
That piece of breakdown work from Itoje is crucial to the Lions recovering their defensive composure.
Notably, from there, the Boks continuously try to avoid Itoje by moving the point of attack away from the second-row.
It matters little as when a chance appears at the end of this series of phases, Itoje wins the turnover by counter-rucking Makazole Mapimpi and de Klerk.
As Gatland noted on Tuesday, sometimes Itoje can be a little over-enthusiastic to do so - wanting to get into everything such is his destructive talent.
However, Jones' all-round work allowed his lock partner to pick and choose his moments wisely to make an impact - which he did to great effect.
GETTING ON TOP
If the first-half was about weathering the Springbok storm, then the second-half became about getting on top in the arm wrestle.
That still required resolute defence, but it was also built on a reliable set-piece and an accurate kicking game.
The former, in particular the lineout, wobbled a bit at times in terms of timing and Luke Cowan-Dickie's throwing.
But the movement of Jones and Itoje combined well with Lawes on a number of occasions to keep the Springboks guessing and secure the Lions off-the-top ball.
At half-time, the Lions tightened things up, in particular their kicking game and driving maul.
Starting with the former, the box-kicks from Ali Price and Conor Murray were more accurate.
But it was about what the Lions did with the scraps from those aerial battles that proved crucial.
On more than one occasion, it was Itoje and Jones in support to secure quick ball once possession had been secured.
Simple rugby basics such as that ensured that the Boks' defence couldn't reset properly, which increased the strain and led to a number of penalties in the second-half.
Another source of penalties was the driving maul, which really got on top.
Whereas the Lions had largely gone to the back - or even directly to Robbie Henshaw in midfield - with their throws in the first-half, they tightened the game up a little in the second, with South Africa happy enough to concede the front of the lineout to them.
On one occasion, the Boks worked that to their favour in driving the Lions into touch, but more often than not, the Lions got the upperhand.
The maul that led to Owen Farrell's penalty that gave the tourists breathing space came as a result of some smart work from Jones as a lifter.
Itoje moves to the front of the lineout and takes the ball cleanly, but Jones, as one of his lifters, just leans through beyond Itoje when the Englishman comes down.
That helps stop Etzebeth work his way through the lineout to the ball, while it also places pressure downwards on Pieter-Steph du Toit, who joins the maul with a low bind.
His team-mate Rynhard Elstadt binds onto the back of him, forcing the flanker down even further.
With the Lions then driving strongly, the weight overcomes du Toit, with the maul rolling over him - leading to a collapsing penalty that Farrell dispatched.
In particular, Gatland would have been delighted with how the tourists dealt with the Boks' biggest weapons - scrum and lineout - and even found joy out of them.
ONE FINAL IMPACT
Perhaps the final piece of praise that can be thrown at the pair is that they were still giving it everything, right up to the final whistle.
For Itoje, that perhaps wasn't a surprise - even in spite of his physical exertions - but for Jones, so soon after overcoming a dislocated shoulder, it was astounding.
Even in the dying minutes, the pair were working in tandem to give the hosts nothing.
Gatland spoke afterwards about how pleased he was with the defensive intensity in that final passage of play.
Here, we see Jones and Itoje defending in close quarters, with the Englishman free to push up onto the ball-carrier and force the error.
From there, Jones pushes out to put pressure on replacement fly-half Elton Jantjies - who was forced to scramble back to recover possession.
Even though Jones misses the tackle, he does pressure the fly-half and when a tackle is finally made, the Boks have been pushed out of the Lions' 22.
Perhaps fittingly, it was Jones who was on hand to secure the ruck when Itoje came up with the crucial turnover after the whistle had gone.
It was two superlative performances by the Lions locks, strengthened by what they bring out in each other.
Another showing like that this Saturday and the legacies of Itoje, Jones and Gatland will be just that little bit better.
