The Premiership is now all we have to play for this season, and although we look certain to make the Wildcard playoffs, we have to secure that position and try to get as good a draw as possible, with the opportunity for a home semi final still open. But that means three wins in the last three Premiership matches of the season, starting on Sunday.

Worcester of course were our first opponents of the season, in only our second meeting. This was way back on September 5th at Sixways in front of a sell-out crowd of 8,300, baked under the Midlands sun. Three converted tries from Mark Mayerhofler, Stuart Grimes and debutant Mike McCarthy as well as three Jonny Wilkinson penalties have us a victory 30-9, and we avoided a possible banana skin against a team playing their first ever top division game looking for an early scalp. Our team that day was: Joe Shaw (David Walder), Tom May, Jamie Noon, Mark Mayerhofler, Michael Stephenson, Jonny Wilkinson ©, Hall Charlton (James Grindal), Ian Peel ©, Matt Thompson (Andy Long), Marius Hurter (Micky Ward), Luke Gross (Craig Hamilton), Stuart Grimes, Mike McCarthy (Semo Sititi), Colin Charvis and Phil Dowson.

Worcester’s last game was, like for us, a European match, though in the third-tier Shield, in a semi-final first leg against Leeds. The Warriors scored six tries, including two from South African Thinus Delport, to win the first 80 minutes 43-34, but will have a fight on their hands in three weeks (surely too long between semi-final legs) to maintain that advantage at Headingley.

Our visitors have made a real fight of their battle against relegation in their first Premiership season, and had looked odds on to stay up in February. However, two successive defeats and the improved form of Northampton and Harlequins have seen Worcester and London Irish slip down towards Leeds in bottom spot, Worcester currently occupying eleventh place.

Worcester have lost their last two Premiership matches, which has dragged them back into the relegation battle. Two weeks ago they went down 19-18 at Sixways against Saracens, despite two tries from club captain Ben Hinshelwood, and their last away game was a 18-10 defeat at Bath.

While Worcester have done rugby a great service by being so competitive this season and quite possibly staying up, we also have a great need for a win this Sunday, after losing four of our last six league games and winning only one and slipping down the table to seventh. The boys need to lift their morale after the defeat in France and get on with the task of climbing the league table.

One key player in the Worcester side is Pat Sanderson, their former England flanker and perennial sevens international. He has fired the Worcester side this season and if we keep him quiet (Colin Charvis at full fitness would greatly assist in this task) then I think we should be able to win.

The teams:-

Falcons

15 Matthew Burke
14 Tom May
13 Jamie Noon (captain)
12 Mark Mayerhofler
11 Mathew Tait
10 Dave Walder
9 Hall Charlton

1 David Wilson
2 Andy Long
3 Micky Ward
4 Luke Gross
5 Stuart Grimes
6 Colin Charvis
7 Cory Harris
8 Phil Dowson

Replacements:

Galo Alvarez Quinones
Matt Thompson
Geoff Parling
Mike McCarthy
James Grindal
Toby Flood
Epi Taione

Warriors

15 Thinus Delport
14 Giscard Pieters
13 Dale Rasmussen
12 Thomas Lombard
11 Ben Hinshelwood
10 James Brown
9 Matt Powell

8 Drew Hickey
7 Pat Sanderson (Capt)
6 Siaosi Vaili
5 Craig Gillies
4 Phil Murphy
3 Neil Lyman
2 Andre van Niekerk
1 Tony Windo

Replacements (from):

16 Steve Sparks
17 Richard Blaze
18 Ben Daly
19 Brad Macleod-Henderson
20 Neil Cole
21 Tommy Hayes
22 Gary Trueman
23 Daren O'Leary
24 Neil Mason

Your referee is Ashley Rowden from Berkshire.

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