I had intended to start this column with praise for how top-level sport has responded to the absence of crowds. However, I now see that Eddie Jones has blamed England’s “sub-standard” start to the Six Nations on the empty stadium, which has apparently kept the players’ “arousal level” low. He quotes some research on a German football club which suggests that its “arousal level” has been 20 per cent below par.

Nevertheless, the Scotland team at Twickenham seemed to have got its “arousal level” pretty high. Indeed the same may be said of the young Italian side last week – despite the defensive errors which let England score some too easy tries. Moreover, at Murrayfield last Saturday – soon after the final whistle at Twickenham – Scotland and Wales gave us a match of high intensity and skill. It was a game that will stay in the memory long after many internationals played before a full house of fans have slipped into oblivion. Though Sunday’s Ireland-France game in Dublin wasn’t as good or exciting as the Murrayfield match, I doubt one could reasonably complain about the “arousal level” there either. So perhaps Jones’s preparation of his team is more to blame than the absence of a crowd for “sub-standard performances”.