DEAN Ryan has issued a warning to his mis-firing senior players that he won’t be afraid to replace them in the Worcester first XV with the club’s up and coming youngsters.

Warriors are bottom of the Aviva Premiership table after four defeats on the spin, but the director of rugby insists reputations count for little in his regime.

“We have had a cycle of people that have been here, but haven’t been able to influence the outcome of this place and we have to start looking for different answers,” Ryan said. “I’m not big on reputations and there is too much around who’s who, but it is all about who can make a positive impact that will be close to the first XV. I don’t need to be here for years to do that.

“If I can’t find it in this senior group, I’ll turn it into a young group because the experience from early exposure for the youngsters will stand them in good stead for the future.”

New academy recruit Dean Hammond was a shock inclusion as a replacement for the game at Wasps, but Ryan is eager to give his talented young guns the chance to shine.

He added: “I won’t chase around and try to look after my reputation – it’s about creating a long-term ability for this club to be successful.

“If that means we can’t find the answer for growth in some of the senior elements of the squad, then I’ll introduce some of the junior elements and an example of that was Dean being on the bench against Wasps.

“Ben Howard and Max Stelling are in the same equation and Dean was on the bench because he can play 13 and wing.

“When we had Jon Clarke on the week before and we had to make a change on the wing, we had to fundamentally un-strip the back-line to make that change.”