If you cast your minds back to the denouement of the Championship Season it was more thrilling and dramatic than any of us thought possible. The side that will now take their place in the Aviva Premiership competition battled back from 14 points to down to draw the final playoff and that was enough to put themselves back into this competition.
The Worcester Warriors put their game on the park from moment one in the Championship, they didn’t let their foot off the gas and were justly reward for their efforts. It has been no secret that Dean Ryan has arrived and shaken things up at Sixways, for the better and at the Aviva Premiership launch he spoke to me about his approach and reasons for doing so:
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Getty for Prem Rugby
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“Fundamentally we changed the type of person that came to Worcester, I think that it i had become a place where people came at the end of their careers and they were well paid and if they got another contract off the back of that it would be outstanding for them. They never came to be successful and I think that in itself tells it own story.”
“To do that you have to go to a younger pool of players and you have got to try and culturally get the right people in the middle of the business to try and move that group on. That has to go in hand with targeting the right experience, people like GJ van Velze, Chris Pennell, Phil Dowson and looking over the summer Donnacha O’Callaghan - we need the right type of experience to allow the group to grow. This is a very different Worcester to the Worcester that was there two or three years ago.”
“We’ve recruited people and I mean that in the sense that we targeted personalities and we targeted characters to be in the middle of the business, then we targeted potential to be around it. People like Ryan Mills and youngsters like that we felt were frustrated at other clubs and we obviously need them to work for the club to grow and we won’t know that until we get in and see if they adapt.”
The interesting thing about Dean Ryan is that he has openly acknowledge that the Worcester Warriors are going to be up against it and that there is, what he calls ‘a gap’. Previously promoted Head Coaches or Directors of Rugby haven’t openly said these words however Dean Ryan is a honest and articulate man who doesn’t shy away from anything. There are plenty of familiar faces at the Worcester Warriors; Ryan Lamb, Tom Biggs, Sam Smith, Tom Heathcoate, and to reiterate Dean’s words ‘many have been frustrated by a lack of opportunity or have been told that they are not Premiership players’. The opportunity to prove people wrong in the stage that 'you aren't right for' is a powerful motivator and will be fuelling individuals’ performances. The set up at the Warriors Warriors is a strong one, their management and focused, their facilities are excellent and having being through a year in the Championship with that kind of ending they are a tight unit. The challenge for this close group of players will be coping with this arduous season and picking themselves up if the tough times arise. It is something that they’re prepared for;
“We know the gap but we are determined not to let the experience go past us because the only way that we are going to find a way of being competitive in this is to keep our heads up, keep enjoying it and be prepared to learn from whatever happened at the weekend.”
Only time will tell if the Warriors will be competitive however I for one hope that they deliver a strong account of themselves over the course of 22 rounds of Aviva Premiership Rugby. There’s no question that their starting XV will be ready but beyond that there are a few question marks, it is time for the entire squad to step up and be counted for.
Players In - Andy Short from Bristol Rugby, Phil Dowson from Northampton Saints, Carl Kirwan from London Welsh, Tom Heathcote from Edinburgh Rugby, Luke Baldwin from Bristol Rugby, Sam Lewis from Ospreys, Cooper Vuna from Toshiba Brave Lupus, Derrick Appiah from Mogliano, Na'ama Leleimalefaga from Montpellier, Darren Barry from Cornish Pirates, Bryce Heem from Chiefs, Donncha O'Callaghan from Munster, Tevita Cavubati from Ospreys, Mike Daniels, Christian Scotland-Williamson & Tiff Eden Promoted from Academy
Players Out - Andries Pretorius (Retired), Mike Williams to Leicester Tigers, Alex Gordas to CSM Bucresti, Sam Windsor to Ulster, Agustin Creevy to Argentina Super Rugby, Leonardo Senatore (Released), Jack Cosgrove to Edinburgh Rugby, Josh Drauniniu to London Welsh, George Porter to Ealing Trailfinders, Rob O'Donnell to Yorkshire Carnegie, Richard de Carpentier to England Sevens, Josh Watkins to England Sevens, James Percival to Grenoble, Shay Kerry to Oyonnax, Ofa Fainga'anuku (Released) & Ignacio Mieres (Released)
