Chris Hilsenbeck was calm and composed last Saturday.

The USA Eagles fly-half stood over a penalty in the 78th minute, 40 metres from the posts, with a chance to win the opening match of the Nations Cup against Portugal.

"My first thought was actually to look at the clock," Hilsenbeck said. "When I got the ball it was still around the 77th minute, so I thought, 'If I miss this, we still have another chance.'

"From then on it's just about staying as calm and composed as you can and doing what you've done hundreds of times before."

As always, the routine never changed. He aimed the ball towards the right upright to allow for his natural draw, stepped back four paces, then four to the left. Every kick follows the same process.

The final cue comes in French—a language he became accustomed to during much of his professional career.

"'Juste ça,'" he explains. "It basically means, 'Just the ball.' You shouldn't kick any differently than what works for you."

That was the mindset of the Chicago Hounds No. 10.

Every goal-kicker dreams of those match-winning moments. I can certainly vouch for that. But those moments come with a price. With one strike of the ball, you can become either the hero or the villain.

Fortunately for Hilsenbeck, the ball sailed cleanly through the posts, giving the Eagles a dramatic 30-29 victory over Portugal. A night where the Eagles fly half went 100% off the kicking the tea, sending the partisan Denver crowd into eruption as the USA opened its Nations Cup campaign with a memorable win, made even sweeter by coming on America's 250th birthday.

But Hilsenbeck knows better than most that the life of a kicker doesn't always have a fairytale ending.

Just over a year earlier, he walked off the field carrying the burden every kicker knows too well.

The Chicago Hounds fly-half had the opportunity to send his team into the 2025 Major League Rugby Championship, only to watch a last-play penalty drift wide in the Eastern Conference Final. It was the type of miss that lingers, regardless of experience or success.

"I guess a year on, the feeling is a lot better!" Hilsenbeck laughs, reflecting on a full-circle redemption story after helping guide the Hounds through an unbeaten season to lift the Major League Rugby Shield at the end of June.

"It definitely sat with me for a while, but I just kept getting more reps in and consolidated the kicking style that I trust.

"I was devastated for the boys because I wanted to give them that final so badly. But personally, I was actually happy with how the kick felt off my boot. Maybe I'm telling myself a story, but I never thought it was something technical or something about my kicking style that needed changing."

Instead of overhauling his technique, Hilsenbeck doubled down on the process he trusted.

The response was emphatic.

He scored 104 points in 12 matches to finish second on the league's scoring charts and played a pivotal role in Chicago's championship-winning campaign. His 15 points in the MLR Championship against the California Legion helped the Hounds to a 35-17 victory, and fittingly, he slotted the final penalty of the match before celebrating as a champion.

"There was an enormous amount of preparation that went into the season," Hilsenbeck says.

"We hit the ground running. We knew exactly what our weeks looked like. Every training session was planned from preseason all the way through. And above all, it was filled with enjoyment."

The Hounds also embraced a distinctly Chicago identity.

Drawing inspiration from the city's history, the coaching staff built the season around the theme of "The Chicago Outfit," encouraging players to become the team nobody wanted to face.

"We created such a strong identity and belief around what we were trying to do," Hilsenbeck says. "I like to think our preparation was just better than anybody else's."

That winning culture is something Hilsenbeck hopes can continue to influence the Eagles as preparations intensify for the 2027 Rugby World Cup.

Several Hounds are members of the USA squad this summer, including Tavite Lopeti, Nathan Den Hoedt, Brandon Harvey, Ruben de Haas and Mark O'Keeffe, bringing the standards and habits developed throughout Chicago's title-winning season.

"It is definitely the goal to bring that," Hilsenbeck says. "I hope just by leading through our actions and showing what it looks like to be professional."

More importantly, he believes the Eagles are beginning to establish an identity of their own under the current coaching staff.

"I think the biggest thing is figuring out what American rugby looks like. How do we want the Eagles to play?

"We've had a really good start. David Williams has been outstanding with our kicking game and the detail around everybody's roles.

"Now it's about pushing that identity again and again until it becomes ingrained."

With Zimbabwe awaiting in Charlotte before a meeting with Spain, Hilsenbeck views the remainder of the summer as an opportunity to continue building rather than simply chasing results.

"The goal is to keep fine-tuning our game," he says. "If the wins come, that's perfect.

"If we're improving in the areas we've identified, then that's a huge achievement for us. We know Zimbabwe is a good team with some quality players who showed that against Tonga last Saturday. Each week will be a different challenge, especially in the heat and humidity of North Carolina."

At 34, Hilsenbeck knows time is no longer on his side.

His American chapter has given his career renewed purpose after spending most of his professional rugby in France and representing Germany until 2019 before switching to the USA through family eligibility.

His final destination is clear: the 2027 Rugby World Cup.

"This is definitely my last big goal as a professional rugby player," he says.

"I had my little boy later in life, and my whole life has been about rugby. I want him to see me as a professional player so badly. I'll do everything I possibly can to be there in 2027."

That journey will likely include another season with the reigning champion Chicago Hounds before attention turns fully towards Australia.

Looking back, perhaps no single word better captures Hilsenbeck's journey from playoff heartbreak to club champion and international match-winner.

When I asked him to sum up the life of a goal-kicker, his answer came without hesitation.

"Repetition."

It's a fitting description for a player whose greatest strength has never been perfection, but the willingness to trust the same process, over and over again, until redemption finally arrived.