And so, back to reality. France has gone. Hello Worcester and Anglo-Welsh competition. The Stade de France has disappeared. Here we are, back at Sixways. Hey ho.
At least there was an echo of the global event, in that Worcester, like England, won plenty of ball and kicked most of it away. It does not look as if they will be going to the final, though. Mike Ruddock, the coach of the 2005 grand slam Wales team and recently installed as the Warriors' coach, has much to do.
And an echo of the Welsh folly that had lit up Nantes and plunged Wales into gloom all at the same time. Remember Fiji? This time there was a happier ending. The Ospreys scored seven tries and romped away with the opening round.
It was as if the spirit of the World Cup lived on. And why not? Because, I suppose, the high kick was the curse of the later stages of the tournament rather than its crowning glory. The up and under is back in fashion. The Garryowen lives on.
The EDF Energy Cup does not come with quite the same strains as the RWC. The kicking was stodgy, the game slow. And then the Ospreys changed tack. Or rather, they won some ball of their own. Their attack began with a quick throw-in near halfway - a quick restart that stood in stark contrast to the pace of delivery for Worcester at the scrum - and led to nothing more complicated than a pass to Lee Byrne and a thrust by the full-back.
Nothing more complicated than a missed tackle by Mark Tucker and a run-in for the try. James Hook converted.
The second try came from a second rude interruption to the Worcester rhythm. They thought they had a scrum under control, but found, instead, the ball being turned over a yard away from the bound bodies. Out went the ball to Nikki Walker, all 6ft 5in of him. The Scotland winger - who did not have a great World Cup - cut inside the much shorter Marcel Garvey and barged through the much lighter Shane Drahm. Try number two.
A third followed before half time. Hook drilled a kick across field to the very much shorter, lighter wing, Shane Williams. Now, this is the player who sums up the difference between Wales and England. In England, Williams would be a luxury, too small for the games when it grows really tight. In Wales, the wing is an essential part of the game, a player to whom the ball must be moved, whatever the risk, on as many occasions as possible. You can take your pick. On this day, he was brilliant. Under this kick, he caught it and skinned two defenders on his way to the line.
The game could have been over. For it to stay afloat, Worcester had to score first in the second half. They did, with a penalty and then a try. James Brown emulated the kick by Hook, drilling the ball to the far wing. It was caught not by a little winger, but by big Craig Gillies, a second-row with dead-safe hands.
The bad news for Worcester was that the game, nevertheless, sank for them. The Ospreys scored four more tries, another each by Byrne and Williams, and one each for Sonny Parker and Mike Phillips.
The approach by the Ospreys was bright and enterprising. They struggled a little at the line-out, but stole enough in the loose to be able to leap forward hungrily.
On the other side, Worcester ran out of steam and ideas. They are well used to finding themselves in a lowly position this side of Christmas and are adept at scrapping their way out of the basement past Easter. They have Rico Gear to come, a New Zealander who cannot fail to improve their attacking options. But they were poor yesterday. They have never lacked spirit, but looked worn down by the end.
Still, if there is one more echo from the World Cup that might live on, it is that no cause is ever lost. Worcester may yet do an England. They have a simple game and look dejected. Perhaps we should start celebrating their inevitable revival. Perhaps.
Sixways Stadium 11,000
Worcester Drahm, Delport, Rasmussen, Tucker, Garvey, Crichton (Brown 62), R Powell (M Powell 62); Morris (Windo 56), Lutui (Fortey 56), Taumoepeau, Murphy, Gillies, Hickey, Sanderson (capt, Horstamnn ht), Quinnell (Bowley 68)
Tries Gillies Cons Brown
Pens Drahm 3
Ospres Byrne; Walker, Parker (Bishop 60), Henson, Williams; Hook (Connor 68), Marshall (Phillips 65); D Jones (Griffiths 68), Bennett (Hibbard 66), Griffiths (A Jones 47), Gough (AW Jones 58), Evans, Thomas, Lewis, Tiatia (capt)
Tries Byrne 2, Walker, Williams 2, Parker, Phillips Cons Hook 4, Connor 2
Referee N Owens
