IT’S looking bleak for Wales after the third stage of their build-up to the World Cup began in exactly the same way as the first two – with a defeat.

In the autumn series last November Wales began with a setback against Australia, in the Six Nations this year they opened up against England and lost, and on Saturday against the Barbarians at the Millennium Stadium the first game of four during the summer met with the same outcome – another defeat.

It’s hardly being bold or even controversial to predict that their next ‘first’ – the World Cup opener against holders South Africa will follow the same pattern, indeed, there is nothing to suggest otherwise.

It’s what happens after that which will determine Wales’ fate with eminently losable matches against Samoa and Fiji, Namibia sandwiched in between, to follow.

And given that two of the best Barbarians players – full back Isa Nacewa, from Fiji, and lock Iosefa Tekori, of Samoa – scored three tries between them on Saturday it has to be said the omens don’t look particularly good.

On top of which coach Warren Gatland’s record in charge of Wales is looking worse almost by the day, now reading won 17, lost 20, drawn one, hardly impressive reading.

Wales obviously fielded a pretty experimental line-up against the Baabaas with a mixture of youth and experience as Gatland took the opportunity to look at his possibilities for New Zealand.

On the other hand, the Baabaas by their very nature are an invitation side made up of loads of talented players from all over the world, often playing it off the cuff and relying on their instincts.

So there was no excuse for Wales on that front, though in the main they were up against far more experienced players.

Nowhere was that more evident than in the back row, where a Welsh trio of Dan Lydiate at 23, Toby Faletau making his debut at 20 and new skipper Sam Warburton at 22 were up against world-class trio Joe van Niekerk, Sergio Parisse and Martyn Williams with George Smith, boasting 118 caps, as a replacement.

Yet the Welsh trio lost little in comparison with their more vaunted opponents, Warburton arguably Wales’ best player, Lydiate contributing his usual power game and Faletau enjoying a terrific second half to celebrate becoming the first Tongan-born player to win a Wales cap.

His agility and springy-like running with that uncanny ability to burst out of tackles offered something different and added a new dimension to Welsh back- row play. His future in the national jersey already looks assured. He led the Wales comeback in the second half as they turned around a 19-14 interval deficit into a 28-19 advantage, Dragons wing Aled Brew maintaining his run with a typical try, charging across after receiving near the line.

They looked to have sealed victory at that stage, and though both sides brought on a raft of replacements the Baabaas still had enough left in the tank to fight back and clinch victory with two tries in the final eight minutes.

First mighty French centre Mathieu Bastareaud powered over after replacement Willie Mason announced his arrival from rugby league, joining Toulon next season, with one of two terrific offloads.

And then in the last minutes Nacewa, who has enjoyed a great season for Leinster, galloped away, escaped a lunge from full back Morgan Stoddart and just evaded the clutches of Faletau to score the match-winner, with Clermont’s Australian outside- half Brock James adding the conversion.

But despite the scoreline it was anything but a free-running frolic, the Baabaas, if anything, owing their victory to more of a power game, especially with their superior scrummaging.

Paul James, switching to tight head again, and debut-maker Ryan Bevington were given all the problems they wanted by New Zealander Carl Hayman, recognised as one of the best scrummagers in the world, and Iestyn Thomas, the vastly experienced, highly underrated Scarlets and ex-Ebbw Vale prop.

The line-outs didn’t exactly go to plan either, but Dragons pair Luke Charteris and Faletau in particular tightened that up after the interval, though the jury must be out on whether Ryan Jones is a lock at international level.

The Welsh defence was at fault, often leaky with far too many ineffective tackles, Jonathan Davies unusually culpable, and coach Shaun Edwards was an angry man afterwards, pointing the finger at the backs in particular.

After George North had given Wales the lead with the type of try which has become his trademark already, Wales leaked two.

Tekori got the first after a Welsh line-out went astray and van Niekerk put in a clever reverse pass, then Nacewa nabbed his first after scrum-half Sebastien Tillous-Borde, who enjoyed a far better game than Mike Phillips, who appeared to want to fight everyone, threw out a shrewd long pass.

Stoddart intercepted to edge Wales back in front before the classy Parisse used his strength rather than his guile to force his way over from close in.

Then came that second-half Wales rally, but it wasn’t enough.

Biggest interest involved the return to the international stage of Gavin Henson. He didn’t have a lot of the ball, but he showed a few nice touches without ever really getting into the game, replaced after an hour, and Baabaas coach Scott Johnson said tellingly after the game that it wasn’t the Henson of old. He will struggle to make the World Cup.

Stephen Jones celebrated his 100th cap with his usual solid performance, but little more, while Lloyd Burns made it an unforgettable 48 hours as he played the final 15 minutes to mark his Wales debut the day after he got married. There could be more caps to come.

Wales: M Stoddart, G North, J Davies, G Henson (S Williams 61), A Brew, S Jones (R Priestland 66), M Phillips (T Knoyle 61), R Bevington, H Bennett (L Burns 64), P James (S Andrews 61), R Jones (A Wyn Jones 61), L Charteris, D Lydiate (J Turnbull 63), T Faletau, S Warburton (captain).

Scorers – tries: G North, M Stoddart, M Phillips, A Brew; conversions: S Jones (4).

Barbarians: I Nacewa, P Sackey (B Baby 61), S Rabeni (W Mason 64), M Bastareaud, D Howlett, B James, S Tillous-Borde, I Thomas (C Hayman 72), S Bruno (L Ghiraldini 54), C Hayman (D Kubriashvili 64), I Tekori, P Tito (E Lund 56), J van Niekerk, S Parisse (captain), M Williams (G Smith 54).

Scorers – tries: I Nacewa (2), I Tekori, S Parisse, M Bastareaud; conversions: B James (3).

Referee: Alain Rolland (Ireland).

Attendance: 31,232.

Argus star man: Sam Warburton.