IF WARRIORS’ supporters were asked to name their best moments at Sixways, there are a few memorable matches which are likely to crop up.
Worcester’s victories over Northampton and Saracens to secure their Premiership status in 2005 and 2007 respectively are two, while the celebrations which took place after they beat Cornish Pirates in the Championship play-off final in 2011 is another.
All three had either relegation or promotion at stake and provided a trilling finale to an otherwise disappointing or uninspiring campaign.
But what is now being proposed by Premiership Rugby and the RFU is to do away with those tense final days by ring-fencing the top flight and expanding it to 14 teams.
Worcester would not have got to where they are now without the league structure in its current guise which is why I question chief executive Jim O’Toole’s backing of the proposed move.
Yes, the Premiership and the Championship are on different levels in terms of financial clout and yes, I agree, it could help to strengthen sides like Worcester who have consistently had the prospect of demotion hanging over them.
But Saturday’s shock result at St Peter’s was enough to suggest promotion and relegation should be there to stay.
Jersey are clearly a club which are going places and, while their ground might not be up to scratch, the desire to mix it with the ‘big boys’ is still there.
Both Warriors and Exeter Chiefs had a dream once of joining the country’s elite in the Premiership, so why should other sides be denied theirs?