With a dozen or so minutes of the Scarlets' meeting with the Blues remaining, a now familiar figure stripped off and got ready to take the field.

The Welsh commentator could hardly have become more excited, noting that far from wanting to rest after the exertions of helping his country win the Grand Slam over the previous seven weeks, George North had to be held back from starting by Nigel Davies, the Scarlets head coach, such was his enthusiasm. Reality or gushing hype?

Within moments of the youngster taking the field we had the answer. Having dominated the match, the Llanelli side were suddenly finding themselves challenged by their hosts, the Cardiff Blues, in the closing stage of a derby that would decide which held the upper hand in terms of being a contender for a place in the RaboDirect Pro12 play-offs. They were also, however, poised to register a four-try bonus point if they could cross the Blues line once more.

As North received the ball for the first time, both issues were resolved. The combination of footwork, pace and power that have quickly made him one of the most feared runners in the world game were all in evidence as he brushed aside his Welsh international team-mate Alex Cuthbert, who started the match and scored one of the Blues' tries, to put the result and bonus-point-securing try on a plate for Dominic Day.

Welsh desperation to start accruing some meaningful silverware was also evident as Ryan Jones, who had shared the leadership duties with Sam Warburton during the Six Nations helped the Ospreys claim a vital win by heading to Dublin to end Leinster's six-month unbeaten run.

Most of their Six Nations heroes were rested over the weekend, but the selective use of these players showed a pragmatic flexibility which stood in stark contrast to the rigid inflexibility of the Scottish decision to rest all those who had played more than the most token part in their feeble, Wooden Spoon-earning, Six Nations bid.

As Glasgow Warriors battled in vain for what could yet prove to be a crucial four-try bonus point against Aironi, could Stuart Hogg have emulated his fellow teenager North by providing the vital spark? We will never know because he, like seven of his Glasgow team-mates, was being rested.

You can make your own mind up as to whether this was another example of Scotland's rugby division mistakenly applying fitness and conditioning policy when what was required was sporting judgment.

However, the Glasgow players' future colleague Sean Lamont, who played every minute of the Six Nations in three different positions, looked fresh enough when setting up the Scarlets' penultimate try.

The Irish also rested their Six Nations players last weekend, but let's be blunt about this, after a decade and more of putting it on the line, during which they have dominated what used to be the Celtic League as well as, latterly, the Heineken Cup, their players have earned the right to a bit of pampering.

Do we really think the same description applies to Scottish players who are invariably heading off on holiday at the time of the season that the Irish provinces are playing their most important matches? Let's call that a rhetorical question.

And Another Thing . . .

Last week, I noted it is one thing running around telling everyone how tough you are and quite another being big enough to admit to a mistake. An apology then . . .

At the foot of that article reference was made to the potential embarrassment of Scotland dropping into the fourth tier of seeds at the next World Cup if, as is now a very serious prospect, they fall out of the top 12 in the world rankings. I was wrong.

As with the Six Nations Championship and Heineken Cup, it is Scotland's good fortune to be protected by rules that reflect the past. As well as the eight quarter-finalists at the 2011 World Cup, those who failed to reach the knockout stages but finished third place in their pools, are guaranteed to be among the top 12 seeds in 2015.

It hardly seems fair and it will be even more embarrassing to be favoured ahead of those who, with fewer opportunities, have climbed the rankings, but it seems that the greatest immediate damage to Scotland's future is being confined to those working in this country.

We are, of course, still entitled to hope that those responsible for the most recent blunders have the courage to admit to their mistakes and correct them. However, the Scottish rugby community holding its collective breath waiting for that to happen may only accelerate the process that seems to be under way.