Many a frustrated writer in search of a metaphor has plucked from the passages of 1 Samuel in the past but this week, the tale of David and Goliath feels apt. Cast, naturally, in the role of the feared Philistine giant are the world champion Springboks; playing their part as the young, overmatched shepherd are a Wales side beaten in their last 11 games and swallowing down nervously the reality that an entire calendar year without a win beckons.
David was at least armed with a staff, five stones and a slingshot; in their current configuration, Warren Gatland’s side look comparatively underpowered. Harmonious elegies seem to play each time a callow side venture in to the grounds of their once intimidating Cardiff castle, mournful howls from the bastions from a public by now expecting little – and yet still finding themselves disappointed.
