Ryan – it’s becoming difficult to make selections

Warriors Director of Rugby Dean Ryan admits it is becoming more and more difficult to make team selections with the pool of talent he has at his disposal.

The former England number-eight has presented opportunities to many members of his squad who have in turn impressed their boss over the past several months.

But the Warriors chief feels that he needs to assess his senior players when they travel to London Scottish this Saturday (kick-off 3pm).

He said: “It’s becoming difficult to select. We’re making strong selections in the next few weeks to give us a snapshot of where we think we’re at and also to give some of those senior players more continuity.

“Some of the selections will include previous bits of form and experience but there is a lot of heat coming from the players who have been performing for the Cavaliers.”

Warriors' second-string side, Worcester Cavaliers, have won all of their five matches to earn a place in the semi-finals of the Aviva A League, while the majority of the same group have earned themselves a place in the knockout stages of the B&I Cup for Warriors.

And Ryan says he is pleased to create a longer fixture list for his team, who will face Pontypridd in the B&I Cup quarter-finals next month.

He stated: “We’re delighted that we’ve been able to extend the fixture list which gives us more time and more challenges and gets us used to playing big games against opposition from different countries.

“Pontypridd will be a different contest, as were Munster A, and it’ll be another good test for the squad.”

Heading into the New Year, Ryan insists he is focused on seeing how far his players have come.

He concluded: “When you look at that cross-section of experience in the team like Ryan Lamb, Agustin Creevy and Jonathan Thomas – they haven’t played very much.

“So now is the time for them to show where they are.

“But we won’t allow reputations to block people coming through.”


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