WORCESTER Warriors could have at least three experienced players missing for the start of their Aviva Premiership campaign.

Scrum-half Francois Hougaard suffered a knee injury during South Africa sevens’ bronze medal-winning tilt at the Rio Olympics.

Head coach Carl Hogg confirmed Chris Pennell will be missing for the first “four or five weeks” with a neck injury which the full-back first picked up last season.

Wing Bryce Heem is on crutches after getting injured during Warriors’ training camp in Tignes, France, while Tom Biggs has a calf problem.

Flanker Dewald Potgieter will be out of action for three months after an operation to repair a tendon tear in his left thigh.

Potgieter had only just returned to full training after being sidelined for four months after shoulder surgery following Worcester’s 15-14 Premiership win at Newcastle Falcons last season.

Warriors kick off their new Premiership season against champions Saracens at Twickenham on Saturday, September 3 (2pm).

Hogg said: “We are going to lose Chris (Pennell) at the front end of the season for four or five weeks but that’s part and parcel of the sport unfortunately and you don’t always have your players throughout the 22 games in the Premiership.

“Chris had an issue with his neck last season and we believed it was resolved.

“We took the best opinion and thought a conservative route would settle the issue down but that was not to be.

“We will lose him for four or five weeks at the start of the season.”

However, Hogg admitted Heem’s injury was not too serious.

He said: “Bryce has picked up something in the pre-season camp at Tignes but we hope that’s something which will be resolved over the next week or so.

“He’s had a scan and hopefully we will get him back in the next 10 days or so.

“Tom (Biggs) has a calf injury and it’s something we are looking to manage.”

Potgieter joined Warriors in February from Japanese side Yamaha Jubilo and made four Premiership appearances, scoring a try at Falcons, before his shoulder injury struck.

He admitted: “I was feeling pretty good and raring to go.

“Final preparations for our annual training camp in France were taking place and everything came together nicely, just in time for the start of the season.”

However, Potgieter felt “a ping” in his thigh during a speed session and a scan confirmed a tear in the central tendon of his rectus femoris, a muscle in his thigh.

“This latest setback will leave me hanging around for 12 weeks all in all,” admitted the 29-year-old.

The South African international won two consecutive Super Rugby titles with the Bulls in 2009 and 2010, amassing 70 appearances for the Pretoria-based side.

Potgieter added: “Experience tells me to break it (the time) up into more manageable bits — a two-week wait for the dressing to come off and another two weeks for that last bit of healing before I start with strength.

“It will be four more weeks before I can start running again and the final stint of four weeks to return to full training and games.”

Warriors expect a crowd of more than 1,100 for tomorrow’s development match against Bristol at Sixways (7.15pm).

It will be the first clash on the new state-of-the-art artificial pitch.

The first-team squad play at Championship outfit Jersey on Saturday (2.30pm).