Blackett praises Wasps’ belief after battling up to third place
Wasps 32 Worcester 17
Lee Blackett can sense the growing confidence which is promising to drive Wasps into the Premiership play-offs after they finally outfought Warriors.
A strong second-half performance saw them over turn a 17-10 deficit and run in 22 unanswered points to end the resilience and hope of a battling Worcester outfit.
They sealed a bonus point win which helped them climb above Sale Sharks and into third spot.
Blackett, the Wasps head coach, said: “There is a lot of belief within the players and they showed just how much the confidence is growing. We had to dig deep and fight back to get the points.
“I’ve said all along that we cannot afford to get too far ahead of ourselves. We have to remain focused on the next game and keep in the mix. But it’s nice to see us third in the table and in good shape.”
Wasps struggled in the first half to impose themselves in the blustery conditions as Warriors threatened to upset the odds by taking a 14-3 lead courtesy of tries from wing Nick David and hooker Beck Cutting, who finished off a driving maul from a line-out.
Full-back Rob Miller had kicked a penalty for Wasps but the hosts, who had a try disallowed from scrum-half Ben Vellacott at the start, needed a spark from somewhere. It came from young England No8 prospect Tom Willis who bulldozed his way over from close range before the break.
Miller and Duncan Weir exchanged penalties as Warriors led 17-13 at the break. Wasps got their noses in front for the first time when flanker Gabriel Oghre dropped on the ball to score and give the hosts a psychological lift.
Wasps finished strongly with the momentum as replacement forward Alfie Barbeary capped his Premiership debut with a third try, before hooker Tom Cruse grabbed the bonus-point try at the death.
Worcester director of rugby Alan Solomons shrugged off the disappointment of another loss and insisted: “We gave away far too many penalties in that second half, but I was pleased with the improvement. We will soon start winning games playing like that.”