Scottish rugby has made definite strides forward in recent years.
But there was a definite sense of Groundhog Day as Gregor Townsend’s team slumped to a 21-10 loss in the Doddie Weir Cup autumn international in Cardiff.
The Scots have now lost their last 10 matches in the Welsh capital and this was their second defeat of 2018, following the 34-7 demolition job by Warren Gatland’s men in the Six Nations Championship in February.
It was a frustrating afternoon because the visitors utterly dominated the territory and possession in the first half.
And there was controversy over disallowed tries for Jonny Gray and Peter Horne, which left some observers baffled.
But, despite the statistics, the reality was that Wales, who had talismanic figures in try scorers, George North and Jonathan Davies and back row star, Justin Tipuric, possessed the cutting edge and streetwise savvy their opponents too often lacked.
The former Scotland prop, Peter Wright, claimed Wales were “mediocre at best”. That only makes you wonder how the hosts looked more dangerous in attack and unquestionably had the pivotal figures of the contest in their ranks.
To their credit, Stuart McInally’s personnel never stopped fighting as the contest progressed and they fell victim to several debatable refereeing decisions during a frenetic and incident-packed last quarter.
But they committed too many mistakes, were too ponderous and one-dimensional, and although McInally gave them hope with a late first-half try, the Scots must be relieved this was their last visit to Cardiff until 2020.
The Welsh have grown accustomed to beating Scotland, even with scraps of possession, and North shone during the opening 40 minutes, when he made constant incisions into his rivals’ defence.
He was tough as teak, a human battering ram and, allied to the kicking precision of Leigh Halfpenny, Wales thrived on the back foot.
It was a reminder reinforced by England’s backs-to-the-wall success over South Africa.
Doddie Weir – a giant of a man and a true rugby great – takes to the field ahead of Wales v Scotland
? It's a very special occasion in Cardiff #WALvSCO
? @BBCOne
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— BBC Sport Wales (@BBCSportWales) November 3, 2018
Ultimately, the most poignant moment of the afternoon was Doddie’s entrance on to the pitch at the Millennium Stadium. He now has bigger battles to fight against motor neurone disease than mere rumbles in the scrum.
But Doddie has always been a winner.
And the Scots need a rapid improvement before tackling Fiji at Murrayfield next weekend.
