Xolile Dalindyebo comes out of nowhere to play rugby explosively. He is from the Eastern Cape, speaks Xhosa, and mysteriously, Japanese. His history is uncertain, but the fans love him because he is, in effect, a black Christian Cullen – small yet very strong, electrifyingly fast with an intelligent side step and an instinct for the game.

He forms a long-term business arrangement with Allison Meyer, a divorcee in her forties and a maverick journalist. Together they carefully construct his public persona, using Twitter and other social media both to project his image and to protect his past.

As his popularity increases, his role within the team grows stronger, and he assumes the captaincy after some inner club maneuvering.

In parallel with this, Xolile embarks on a series of reconnaissance visits to unlikely places to recruit extra players, a bit like the search for special skills in the movie ‘The Magnificent Seven.’ He eventually recruits six additional players. With extra talent and a slew of new tactics on the field, this could finally be the year of the Lions…

But nothing is as it seems in the world of rugby, and Xolile’s past may still return to haunt him and the team….