IT promises to be an intriguing seven weeks of international rugby but it is a great shame Chris Horsman will probably be the only Warriors representative strutting his stuff on the highest stage of all.

The almost total lack of Worcester involvement in the Six Nations is unlikely to have director of rugby John Brain crying into his beer but it is worrying all the same and does little for the profile of a club struggling to attract the top names in European rugby.

During the club's two-and-half year Premiership odyssey, Pat Sanderson has been the only England regular in the ranks but there is no place for him in Brian Ashton's new order and he was not even handed the dubious honour of a place in the Saxons team.

Given his form over the past 12 months, Sanderson's ab-sence from the senior set-up can hardly be considered a major surprise but the man who captained his country just last summer deserved, at the very least, to be given an explanation for his omission.

That none was forthcoming from the England hierarchy before the announcement of Ashton's first squad, raises questions about their style of man-management but Sanderson has at least been told his exclusion him from the second string is motivated by a desire to run the rule over untested players.

A youthful back row of James Haskell, Tom Rees and Jordan Crane was picked for the Saxons' game with Italy A' tomorrow (Rees has since been called up to the full squad) which suggests a relative veteran like Sanderson will have his work cut out if he is to reclaim his spot.

It is also a concern for another Sixways loose forward. Kai Horstmann seemed to be on the fast track to international recognition when he toured with the Churchill Cup squad in the summer but now seems to have fallen off the radar.

Horstmann has been one of Worcester's most consistent players this campaign but has had practically no rest time and has also endured the extra burden of captaining a struggling side for much of the season.

Of the other players touted for international honours, Sh-ane Drahm has failed to recapture his form of last season, Marcel Garvey has shown only glimpses of the vast potential he clearly possesses and Phil Murphy is struggling just to get a regular run-out at club level.

Another second-row player, Craig Gillies, probably has more reason than most to feel aggrieved at being overlooked once again by his country.

The 6ft 7ins player showed in last week's tussle with Wasps why he has long been considered one of the best line-out forwards in the Premiership but for some reason has never found favour with international selectors.

The club's Welsh contingent are probably closer to the international set-up than their Red Rose counterparts.

Horsman's return to form has been a feature of Worces-ter's recent mini-revival and Gavin Quinnell has the talent and power to contend for a spot in the not-too-distant future.

Like Horsman, Matt Powell is close to his best but the competition for the number nine jersey in Gareth Jenkins' squad could not be sterner. His international prospects would probably be better had he been born the other side of the Welsh border.

None of these players' cases will be helped by the fact they are playing for a club propping up the league but there are undoubtably difficulties in recruiting players of international class.

These are concerns that need to be addressed but for now Brain will be delighted he has the opportunity to keep his squad fresh while other clubs find their squads decimated as a result of the Six Nations.

If that helps Worcester preserve their Premiership status, the limited involvement of Warriors players on the international stage could be a price worth paying.