Cruelly, Wales discovered against South Africa in Pretoria that there are no prizes for winning the first halves of rugby matches.
It was also beyond unlucky for them to lose a player in a position where they could least afford to lose anyone.
Possibly, Wayne Pivac might have considered ordering extra supplies of cotton wool to keep Tomas Francis in one piece heading into the Test series against South Africa. The prop left these shores with a back niggle or two but the coaches would have hoped — prayed even — that he would be able to play a full part in the Tests. He is, after all, the only proven Test-class scrummaging No. 3 in the tourists’ squad.
Priceless, then.
South Africa also have the best set-piece in the world.
But Francis’ on-pitch involvement in the first Test in Pretoria was confined to just a minute before he had to leave the field after misjudging a tackle and taking a bang to the head.
He’s definitely out of the second Test and probably off limits for the rest of the series. You can read more about the concerning scenes that held up play for seven minutes here.
How do Wales respond?
By running around in circles and channelling their inner Corporal Jones and shouting "don't panic"?
It wouldn't get them far.
But they have a problem that needs to be dealt with.
In Dillon Lewis, they have a No. 3 who is good around the field but not renowned as a scrummager, while the two other tightheads in the squad are Sam Wainwright and Harri O’Connor, both promising but both ultra-short of senior experience.
Pivac, then, could be excused for thinking his options are not particularly great ones.
There seems little point in calling a replacement because no obvious ones come to mind, with Samson Lee injured and Rhys Henry still putting miles on the clock. The Ospreys' Tom Botha would have been perfect as he’s mature and can scrummage, but Wales failed to cap him before the regulations changed at the turn of the year and he’s now out of reach until next year. Similarly, the Scarlets' Javan Sebastian has thrown his lot in with Scotland.
Another option is to stick with Lewis as a starter and name either Wainwright or O’Connor on the bench. It’s a gamble as an early injury to the Cardiff man could see one of the youngsters dished up a potential ordeal against two of the best scrummagers in world rugby in Ox Nche and Steven Kitshoff.
There is yet one more course that Pivac might consider exploring and that is to ask Wyn Jones to cover Lewis on the tighthead side. The Test Lion started with Llandovery as a No. 3 before being moved across to loosehead by team boss Euros Evans. It’s understood the Scarlets have considered using Jones in the scrum anchor role when they’ve had issues there in the past.
It wouldn’t be easy for him, even if he proved fit enough to be considered for selection after his pre-tour knee injury. Rare is the prop who is able to cover both sides at the highest level of rugby. “It’s akin to trying to master two different languages,” one seasoned front-row campaigner once said. “Not easy.”
But Wales have a major issue to contend with and for Pivac and forwards coach Jonathan Humphreys it is a question of running with the least unpalatable option.
It’s not where the tourists would have wanted to be. But every tour throws up unexpected challenges. It's up to the team management to adapt.
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