Earlier this week he said he was "flattered" to be compared with the great Barry John, but he didn't exactly head down the territory of rubbishing the comparison with one of his country's, maybe even the world's, greatest number 10s. All Hook would say was he was "at the beginning" of his career and true judgement might have to wait but he seemed happy to accept the plaudits. In many ways, though, you can't blame him.

The kid has achieved so much, so soon.

At just 20, and with just two substitute appearance to his name as an Osprey, he made his international debut as a replacement on Wales's summer tour to Argentina, and following a further seven starts for his region in the Magners League and EDF Energy Cup this season, he effectively established himself as a regular for his country during the November international series.

The maturity, authority and calmness of his performance in replacing Stephen Jones against Australia on 25 minutes brought Hook to everybody's attention, but two or three weeks earlier he'd caught the eye on a slightly smaller stage. Most observers winced when they saw the 21-year-old addressing the Ospreys' last-minute potential match winning conversion against Sale in the Heineken Cup, but he held his nerve. Not only that. Even in the move that led to the try he so calmly converted, Hook showed an incredible patience at out-half as his side put the ball through 20 or so phases. Most players of his age suffer from what the coaching fraternity term "young bull syndrome", the tendency to attempt to win games on their own, but that night Hook engineered, rather than forced, the try that led to his match-winning conversion. He played like he'd been on the scene for years, not months.

While his two moments in the sun so far have come at out-half, he lines up at inside centre against Ireland today but that appears to suit everyone in the Wales camp. For one, it shores up a potential midfield crisis, with Sonny Parker, Tom Shanklin and Gareth Thomas unavailable, while it also gives Hook the opportunity to learn the ropes of Six Nations rugby, in not only a less pressurised position, but also outside Stephen Jones, a player he'd do well to imitate. It seems an ideal way to develop.

There are some question marks about his defensive capabilities in a game against the more experienced duo of Gordon D'Arcy and Brian O'Driscoll, but if his technique needs work, you don't doubt he's mentally strong enough. A few weeks back, while playing in the return game between Sale and Ospreys, Sebastien Chabal tossed out every English swear word in his vocabulary to unsettle Hook, but typical of the youngster's attitude he took it as a positive. "I let words drift over my head.

But I suppose I can take what Chabal did as a compliment."

You'd imagine D'Arcy and O'Driscoll might get in his face a little this afternoon - there's no harm in testing the lad - but there's a respect for his abilities. "Hook is absolutely fantastic, a really talented player, " said D'Arcy this week. "He came on with about 15 minutes remaining for the Ospreys against Leinster recently and he just picked up the tempo. He's a hard guy to get a hold of, because of his ability to step in a close area. He's going to be a tough opponent."

Of that, there's no doubt.