No user of social media will have escaped the small-minded wee dig at the hosts lately with the joke about the Englishman who walks into a bar… and find that the Scotsman, the Irishman and Welshman aren’t there because they are all still away at the World Cup.

It would be great for European rugby if he was still drinking a bit longer, however… and the Scottish member of that much-mocked quartet in particular has reason to be hoping for at least another week or two’s stay of execution because once this tournament is over there will be around nine months for said Englishman to discuss his team’s perfect record in football’s European Championship qualifiers while expressing faux disappointment that the opportunity was missed for all of the ‘Six Nations’ to be represented in France next summer.