PAT Sanderson has warned his Warriors team not to underestimate London Irish when the sides meet at the Madejski Stadium on Sunday.

The Worcester skipper insists Irish are the Premiership's form side following their 27-11 win against Leeds.

He said: "Irish are a good side. They've had a good pre-season from what we can gather. They've won every game and had a good win last week. They've got an excellent line-out.

"They are a very tough side to break down, especially on their ground."

The Exiles have strengthened their squad over the summer with the arrival of the hugely experienced French international Olivier Magne. The 32-year-old back-row forward has won 83 international caps and has four Grand Slam titles to his name.

"They are not a weak side," said Sanderson. "They've got some class. They've brought in Magne. They've got Mike Catt on the top of his game.

"They look a good outfit this year and they need to be respected."

Warriors team-mate Jonny Hylton is also expecting a testing time in Reading.

He said: "London Irish will be a tough game. They played well last weekend.

"They are playing some pretty good rugby so we'll have to be on top of our game.

"But we're still pretty confident that we can go down there and get a win without any shadow of a doubt.

"We're still a confident bunch of guys and there's nothing really that fazes us. We'll go down there and hopefully get a win at the Madejski."

Sixways director of rugby John Brain thinks it could be a close contest after watching Irish claim five points against the Tykes.

"They played pretty well," he said. "They've signed some good new players so it is going to be interesting."