Richard Hill praised the impact of Blair Cowan and the returning Kai Horstmann as Warriors ground out a 19-9 win over Newcastle Falcons.
Horstmann started his first league game since late September and was in the thick of the action throughout.
Cowan was an early replacement for the unfortunately injured Jake Abbott and played a big role in the break to set-up Alex Grove’s try.
Hill said: “Blair was very good. There is some big competition in the back row and it was tough to drop Blair for Kai (Horstmann)
“I thought Kai was very good as well, for his first big game back he was excellent. But Blair obviously rose to the competition with his performance. He was one of our best carriers and was outstanding.
“Jake has twisted an ankle. He was disappointed to come off because he wants to stay on all the time.
“He tried to carry on but the medics told him to come off. The first thing he said to me was that he will be play for next week.”
Hill also revealed he hopes to play Matt Kvesic and Neil Best in the friendly with Northampton Wanderers on Monday night as the battle for back row shirts intensifies in the closing months of the season.
“I will put all the players who have not played tonight in the A game. A fixture against Northampton will be better than a couple of training sessions,” he added.
“There will be people like Matt Kvesic and Neil Best who come into contention. A lot of players are desperate to play, like Craig Gillies at lock, will get a go too and the chance to impress.”
“I thought Kai was very good as well, for his first big game back he was excellent. But Blair obviously rose to the competition with his performance. He was one of our best carriers and was outstanding…"