Saturday, April 10, 2004

IT was a day for old certainties and future possibilities at Coundon Road.

With the champagne celebrations of last weekend now merely a memento of the past, the focus has switched towards Worcester's ammunition for next season's war of attrition.

Players who were basking in the glory of promotion only days ago had their futures on the line against another kind of desperation in the form of Coventry. It illustrated the ruthlessness of professional rugby perfectly and, inevitably on Saturday, there were winners and losers.

Ultimately, Coventry were the biggest losers on the day, but their future was plotted long before the National One champions arrived to put them in their place.

For Worcester, though, there were players who gave coaches John Brain and Andy Keast a clear reminder of their hunger to maintain their Sixways status. Ironically, Neil Mason wasn't due to start against Coventry. A hamstring strain to Richard Bates, however, let the blindside flanker in for a rare start.

He left the field as the outstanding figure of the team, an achievement which went some way to reassuring his Worcester future.

"Life's all about taking chances and I think Neil took his," said director of rugby Brain.

"I thought he was outstanding. He's one of a number of players who have put their hand up with regards to next season."

With the signing of Clive Stuart-Smith, it was Neil Cole who was also in the spotlight. The scrum-half has not enjoyed the luxury of continuity since his arrival from Natal Sharks but against Coventry he visibly grew as the match progressed.

In some ways, he personified the team. Down 18-17 at half-time following a sluggish display, the champions -- with Keast's 'team talk' still ringing in their ears -- came out and blew their opponents away.

Worcester never gave the impression they could manufacture a defeat but with Coventry happy to take the penalties on offer and conjure a couple of drop goals, you could not argue with the half-time scoreline.

Tries from Daren O'Leary, Chris Garrard and Drew Hickey illustrated that if Worcester got their basics right and injected even the slightest hint of tempo into their game, there were scores galore to be had.

Coventry, though, sensed that these Warriors were stuck in second gear and stamped on the accelerator pedal. Four penalties from Gareth Cull and two delicious drop goals from Simon Martin and Mark Meenan were enough to edge them ahead.

That, though, was as good as it got for Coventry.

Cole began Worcester's second-half avalanche with a moment of personal liberation. The try visibly relaxed him and suddenly, Worcester were a different proposition.

With the addition of James Brown, the Warriors suddenly had the old momentum back and, following a period of pressure, Tommy Hayes wove his way in, on 55 minutes, for try number five, courtesy of Brown's assist.

After Cole's sniping had won Worcester a 64th minute penalty, the old certainty of Craig Gillies' line-out work set up possession for Ben Hinshelwood to ultimately break through.

It was Mason, though, who took the eye. The former academy ace was everywhere, snaffling loose ball, tackling anything that moved and even side-stepping his way to the line with 12 minutes left.

Then, it was just a case of who was hungriest for tries. Inevitably, it was O'Leary who was first at the table. He became joint top try scorer with his 17th and 18th of the season to seal his third hat-trick of the campaign, while Hayes finished with six conversions for the day.

Worcester: O'Leary 8; Garrard 7, Officer 5, Hinshelwood 8, Hylton 8; Hayes 7, Cole 7; Windo 7, Hall 7, Fortey 8, Gabey 7, Gillies 8, MASON 9, Pfister 6, Hickey 8. Replacements: Powell, Brown 8 (Officer 51), Davies, Clunis, Warren, Zaltzman, M. Evans.

Man of the match: Neil Mason -- showed his hunger to extend his Sixways career in the best possible way.