By Gareth Roberts BBC Sport Wales at the Millennium Stadium
Wales coach Warren Gatland needed only to say a few key phrases in the wake of Friday's opening 2011 Six Nations defeat by England: "We're disappointed in our mistakes, proud of our effort and need to be self-critical."
Indeed, he could even have uttered the following: "I thought we played pretty well but a couple of turnovers cost us points and we missed a couple of crucial shots at goal.
"If we had been a bit more accurate and kicked our goals, it could have been different.
"There were a lot of positives today but a couple of critical errors have been very costly in the end."
In the event he said: "I can't complain about the effort out there that was put in.
"But we still need to be very, very self-critical on areas that we can still improve in our game."
The former statement was Gatland's assessment in the wake of Wales' 25-16 loss to Australia in November, the latter his immediate take on Friday's 26-19 setback.
So it seems that the record is stuck when it comes to Wales' post-match self-assessment.
Fiji celebrate knocking Wales out of the 2007 World Cup in Nantes
They can also complain all they like about a relative lack of playing numbers and financial resources compared to the major nations - New Zealand, South Africa, Australia, England and France.
However, the teams Wales must really worry about this year are Fiji and Samoa, who are one and two places respectively below them in the world rankings.
Both of them have inflicted damaging defeats on Wales at World Cups, and both will be in their pool at this year's World Cup.
If any nations have the right to moan about a lack of resources, not to mention difficulties in bringing squads together to prepare, they are the South Sea Islanders.
Yet despite all the advantages Wales will have over Samoa and Fiji, they already look vulnerable to what lies ahead in New Zealand.
Under Gatland's reign, Wales began by extolling the virtue of being fitter than anyone else and whether or not that was true, the fact that his players bought it under-pinned the self-belief that swept them to the 2008 Grand Slam in his inaugural season.
That success also raised expectations of further glory under Gatland. But the 2008 Six Nations accounts for five of the 14 wins he has on his Wales record in a tally that includes 18 defeats and a draw.
Against Scotland at Murrayfield next Saturday, Gatland will equal the 34 games his ground-breaking Kiwi predecessor Graham Henry took charge of. When he left in 2002, Henry's record read won 20, drawn one, lost 13.
Only one other Wales coach has been in charge for more games than Henry - Alan Davies (1991-95: 35 games, won 18 lost 17).
Davies took over ahead of the 1991 tournament at which Samoa famously put the Welsh out at the pool stage in Cardiff, but was sacked ahead of the 1995 tournament following a Five Nations whitewash.
So Gatland has some catching up to do with fellow Kiwi Henry in his win-loss ratio, and if the rot on the scoreboard goes on, he could yet fall victim to the impatience of Welsh fans for some wins they would regard as significant, as Davies did.
Of the world's leading nations, Wales have beaten only Australia (21-18 in November, 2008) and England since the 2008 Grand Slam.
Ahead of this Six Nations, Gatland reminded the media that Wales' pack was not pushed around in last November's defeats by the Wallabies, South Africa and New Zealand.
But they were pushed around at times by England at the Millennium Stadium on Friday and as with some recent contests with the Springboks and All Blacks, Wales failed to heed another of Gatland's mantras - to be clinical when chances came their way.
The Welsh Rugby Union has already contracted Gatland until the 2015 World Cup, although he has admitted he will not be allowed to continue if Wales fail to reach the 2011 quarter-finals.
If Wales are to have confidence in that target, Gatland and his assistants must ensure his players do not continue to repeat the sort of mistakes that have afflicted them during so many narrow defeats of late.
If they fail to heed the message, Wales will head to New Zealand with hope rather than expectation, a situation Samoa and Fiji will relish.
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