With Warriors now confirmed in the European Challenge Cup quarter finals, the Club are looking to build on its momentum and take a giant stride towards a possible Heineken Cup place for next season when they play Bucuresti at Sixways Stadium this Saturday.
After Worcester’s mauling of Montauban in France last Friday, Warriors find themselves in a strong position, with their future success in their own hands. A win over Bucuresti and a four try bonus point would guarantee the club either first or second seeding in the knockout stages.
The previous two years have shown that being seeded in the top two after the pool stages is a distinct advantage in making the final, with home crowds playing a vital role in the teams’ success.
General Manager of Worcester Warriors explains “In the last two years, the semi final has been a single match and hosted at the home venue and not a neutral ground. It is at the discretion of the tournament organisers ERC but if we qualify as either first or second seeds then we have a chance of a home quarter and semi final. Obviously we firstly need to win well this weekend and then win the quarter final before the ERC will make their decision but it is there now for us to achieve.”
Worcester Warriors have seen local rivals Gloucester use it to their advantage in the 2005/06 when they beat the Sixways team in the semi finals and went on to win the whole competition. Clermont Auvergne did the same last year and used the platform to grow and establish themselves in the Heineken Cup.
The European Challenge Cup 2007/08 has seen Warriors win five out of five matches, scoring 199 points, made up of 29 tries. A win over Bucuresti this Saturday will also mean that for the first time, Worcester have gone through the pool stages without losing a game.
Charlie Little continued, “I cannot stress enough how important this game is to the Club. It is a crucial fixture in our season and I urge all our fans to make their voices heard and push the team forwards towards the win that we need. Home advantage is important to the team when we get into the latter stages of the competition and are playing the better teams in the tournament. While certain things will lie outside our control, a win and four tries will ideally place us for an assault on the European Challenge Cup.”
Tickets for this Saturdays visit of Bucuresti to Sixways Stadium in the European Challenge Cup are still available on www.wrfc.co.uk by CLICKING HERE, or from the Warriors Ticket Office on 0870 9905650.
Please Note:
Sixways will be showing highlight’s of last weekend’s Montauban match over Warriors TV before this Saturdays (January 19) Bucuresti match – The match will be shown in all bars around the stadium complex.