Warriors boss Mike Ruddock insisted his side deserved at least a share of the spoils after a last ditch try from London Irish condemned his side to a painful Guinness Premiership defeat.
The Director of Rugby watched his side take a second half lead with a stunning league debut try from New Zealand international Sam Tuitupou.
But a late score with just three minutes left ensured Warriors only had a bonus point to take home from a game played in horrendous conditions with thick fog at the Madejski Stadium.
“I thought it was an excellent effort by our players and if we can give that effort every week and perhaps cut down on the number of penalties we give away, we’ll win a lot more games than we lose for the rest of the season,” he said.
“We don’t need to panic – we were away from home against a very good side and we deserved a draw and could possibly have sneaked a win.
“I thought their try at the end was well finished, but I’d like to look again because I thought there was some blocking on our cover defence which was crucial. It stopped us making the tackle which would have prevented the try.”
“The conditions were terrible – from our lofty position in the stand it was very difficult. There was some talk of the game being called off after 60 minutes but it went the full length – it would have been better for us if it had been called off sooner.”
The defeat saw Warriors draw level with Leeds Carnegie on points but remain bottom of the Guinness Premiership table.
However, Ruddock refused to criticise his side and instead insisted the future was bright.
“There was a huge effort from all the players and I can’t fault the way we approached it,” he said. “If we can play that way against a Heineken Cup team then it bodes well for us.
“This team has definitely improved. We’ve added some quality players and although we are yet to win in the league, we are very confident we can put a run together and move up the table.
“It is vital for us to keep scrapping and keep getting points, whether that is from winning games or picking up bonus points.”