WORCESTER Warriors director of rugby Dean Ryan believes there will be genuine competition for the fly-half jersey this season.

New arrival Tom Heathcote made an impressive debut in Worcester’s entertaining 43-35 defeat against the Barbarians on Saturday.

The former Edinburgh playmaker set up one of Warriors’ tries and converted all five in an assured performance in Worcester’s first warm-up match ahead of their Aviva Premiership return.

Scrum-half Luke Baldwin also showed up well on his Worcester debut in front of a disappointingly low Sixways crowd of 3,741.

Ryan admitted: “I thought Luke looked sharp and, under pressure, he tidied things up well.

“I was really pleased with him and Tom who looked really comfortable and his goal-kicking was spot on.

“He looked really sharp and when we play a more structured game it will make life easier for those two.

“Heathcote came here to compete with Ryan Lamb and I am sure Ryan will respond to that challenge. We are really pleased. It’s not an area we’ve had strength in depth in the past.”

Andy Short’s return to Worcester lasted six minutes after he left the field with an ankle injury.

Warriors also lost tighthead prop Joe Rees with a head injury.

“Joe had a bang on the head so that immediately took precedence – he will just go through the normal return to play protocol,” said Ryan. “Shorty went over on an ankle.”

Debutant Phil Dowson, Cooper Vuna, Val Ruskin, Ben Howard and Ravai Fatiaki crossed for Warriors with wing Dom Shipperley grabbing a hat-trick for the Baa-Baas, who ran in six tries.

The Barbarians, with Benn Robinson, Silatolu Latu and Carl Hayman in the front row, dominated the scrum with Warriors newcomer Na’ama Leleimalefaga given a tough afternoon.

“We were disappointed with our set-piece and the understanding we had after we lost our tighthead in the early stages,” admitted Ryan.

“We were up against the likes of Hayman and the players saw what it looked like against top opposition. That area framed the game because we couldn’t really get any ball from there.

“It’s not going to be the last time the scrum becomes a feature for us over the next few weeks but, as long as it’s something we recognise and keep working at, we can get better at it.”

Ryan said the most important thing about Warriors’ opening match had been to get the club’s summer signings on to the field.

“We had two weeks away in camp and we knew it would be a serious test against the Barbarians,” said Ryan.

“The key idea was to get everyone new to the club out on to the pitch.

“We probably played into the Barbarians’ hands a little bit but it started to get a bit more of natural order later on and I was pleased.

“Everyone now is a part of Worcester which was the box we wanted to tick.

“The players also had an opportunity to see what the best players in the world looked like close up rather just seeing them on television.”