WARRIORS fans finally have something to cheer about and it hasn't come a minute too soon.

The dark cloud which has been hanging over Sixways since the end of the summer is slowly beginning to clear and hopes of a renaissance do not seem nearly as fanciful as they did a week ago.

But the big question is how Worcester's beleaguered players were transformed from a bunch of no-hopers to the efficient rugby machine which overwhelmed the country's hottest team on their own turf.

Part of the answer probably lies in the selection gamble undertaken by John Brain for the Saracens match. He introduced the likes of James Brown, Matt Powell, Chris Fortey and Thinus Delport who all played as if they had a point to prove.

"It's always good as a coach when you make selections like that and the people you selected repay the faith shown in them," said Brain.

The Sixways supremo's tinkering had another effect. Shane Drahm is probably the closest thing Worcester have had to an undroppable player over the last 12 months and his demotion to the bench no doubt focused the mind.

Drahm may well have been peeved but his match-winning contribution underlines the true class of a top professional.

The other big difference was the Tony Windo factor. The veteran prop entered the fray at half-time like a knight on horseback sent to rescue his team-mates in their hour of need.

Brain regards Windo as the most influential player in the squad and is delighted to see him playing again after a lengthy injury lay-off.

"It is a big boost for us," said Worcester's director of rugby. "We have certainly missed Tony. It is the first time he has had a prolonged absence from the team. He is a leadership figure around the club and it's a real bonus to have him back."

But it is not just leadership that Worcester have missed. Their season up until Sunday had been characterised by disarray at the line-out but there were signs of substantial progress at Vicarage Road.

"Tony has called the line-outs since we have been in the Premiership so that can't be underestimated," said Brain.

Fortey's return at hooker no doubt helped and Worcester were at their most threatening when Craig Gillies and Phil Murphy were in harness in the second-half.

Brain does not attribute the improvement to a change in personnel but rather to hard work on the training ground.

"I think some of (the problems) had to do with the throwing but not a great deal," he said. "Our line-out misfired against Bristol and Chris Fortey was throwing in that game.

"We were making errors in calling and execution, some of which concerned throwing, some of which concerned lifting. The players have put in a lot of work in that area and that's why we saw an improvement."

Windo echoed Brain's sentiments. "Our line-out functioned very well," he said. "It's something we worked on quite a lot last week. We have done a lot of homework, a lot of practical work. It paid off at the weekend and hopefully it will continue to improve.

"It was really nice to get back out there and contribute to the team performance. We have always kept confidence in what we can do. To get the first win is a big boost."

For all their success on Sunday, there is still a long way to go before Worcester are out of the mire and Windo is under no illusions about the size of the task.

"We have got a long ladder to climb and we are on the first rung," he said. "Hopefully we can take another step at the weekend and carry on climbing up the ladder."