Warriors aim to keep bite against Sharks - The Worcester Observer

Warriors aim to keep bite against Sharks

Worcester Editorial 25th Oct, 2018   0

WORCESTER Warriors welcome Sale Sharks to Sixways for the kick-off to their Premiership Rugby Cup campaign looking to make it four wins in a row in all competitions.

Sixways chief Alan Solomons has urged his side to continue their good run when the Sharks visit on Friday (7.45pm).

Solomons took a back seat during the European Challenge Cup clashes, with head coach Rory Duncan taking over some of his responsibilites, but the South African was impressed with his side’s efforts.

“It was a good performance by a young side against Stade Francais who had virtually their full starting XV out for the second half. We didn’t play quite so well against Ospreys but the real positive was that we won,” he said.




“The two matches have been a good test of our strength in depth. We rested players who had played in the majority of the block of six Premiership matches.

“Those players are now back and will be given game time over the next couple of weeks. It’s almost three weeks since the Bristol match so they need to play before we return to Premiership action.


“Every club will have their own strategy for this competition. We operate a rotation system which allows us to give players rest as well as opportunities,” he added.

Solomons lavished praised on Ted Hill, Ben Te’o and Nick Schonert who all fly to Portugal today (Wednesday) as part of England’s training squad ahead of the autumn internationals.

“It’s fantastic to see three players from the club recognised. The more players involved the better. Great to see Ted Hill included. Ollie Lawrence also trained with England last season which reflects well on the club’s Academy system,” he said.

“We’ve got an excellent crop of youngsters at the moment. A vibrant, flourishing academy is key to us moving forward.”

Solomons confirmed Ashley Beck is facing six months on the sidelines with further scans following his broken leg also revealing ligament damge, while Jono Lance will see a specialist about a back injury.

Carl Kirwan is recovering from a hamstring injury and is expected to be playing again by the time Warriors resume their European campaign in early December.

The Sixways side made it two wins out of two in the European Challenge Cup but missed out on a try bonus point in a match of two distinct halves at Sixways on Saturday.

Warriors were impressive in the first half when they rattled up 21 unanswered points but Ospreys hit back strongly in the second period.

Warriors needed two second half penalties from Jamie Shillcock, who started in place of the injured Jono Lance, to secure the 27-21 win and top spot in their group.

Shillock finished with a match haul of 17 points and hooker Jack Singleton celebrated his 50th Warriors appearance with a try.

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