For all they know, Reyes could twang a hamstring hopping up on the stage at his welcome-to-Miami news conference.

Even outside the scrum, where things continued to fall apart fitness-wise when Roberts twanged a hamstring, there were sources of comfort for the coaches.

Duncan Bell, another Bath prop, was among those omitted when Johnson named his senior squad last week, while the 36-year-old Leicester forward Julian White has played only half an hour of rugby since twanging a hamstring last October.

Dan Cole, the brilliant young tight-head prop from Leicester, was promoted from the second-string Saxons squad as cover for his injured club-mate Julian White, who has not started a match since twanging a hamstring in October.

The Irish outside-half twanged a hamstring during his appearance off the bench against the Reds and while he was able to play on, and while subsequent checks revealed no tearing of the muscle, it was enough to alarm the back-room staff.

Ronan O'Gara, summoned from the bench when the Lions No 10-in-waiting Jonathan Sexton twanged a hamstring in fly-hacking a loose ball downfield, landed two penalties to square it and the visitors, now a man short, were in a mighty bad place.

The most urgent issue is the fitness of George North, who was nailed on for the left wing berth until he twanged a hamstring during Tuesday's knockabout game with the Combined Queensland/New South Wales Country XV in Newcastle.

Three games into his comeback, he twanged a hamstring and was forced into another spell on the sidelines.