WORCESTER Warriors coach Matt Everard admitted that sides are flying out of the gates against them because they are the ‘new boys on the block’.
The coach added that he was pleased his side stuck to their gameplan when Caldy did the same, as Warriors fought hard to clinch the victory with the last play of the match.
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Warriors ultimately took a 15-17 away win in the bout, first taking the lead in the final seconds as Jake Garside went over for the win.
“I was really proud of the lads in regards to sticking with the plan and staying with the fight,” said Everard following the final whistle. “Did everything go right? Absolutely not – it’s a really, really hard place to come play, Caldy are a very, very good team, very good set piece and talented half-backs, and you could see that.
“I think they’ve beat every single Champ team at this ground, bar potentially Hartpury and you can see why.
“I think we are seeing teams come out the blocks and having really good first quarters against us because we’re the new boys on the block and I understand that – it’s how we deal with it.
“We played the long game, stuck in it, stuck to the plan, at no point did we divert away from that and we came out the right side of it in the end.”
On Jake Garside’s performance on the wing, going over twice in second half and crossing for the crucial winning score, he added: “He’s a pocket rocket isn’t he? A bit of x-factor.
“A brilliant bloke, so relaxed, really, really fun to be around and then he just turns it on. His change of direction and his ability to get to top speed in a really, really small space, we are really lucky to have him – blessed to have him. He is a very talented young man.”
The victory sees Warriors replace Caldy as the second-placed side in the Champ, alongside securing their first win away from Sixways after two narrow, three-point losses against Hartpury and Doncaster on the road.
“It’s not something we spoke about,” admitted Everard on getting off the mark on the road. “We spoke about being harder to beat. When we’ve lost, it’s how can we be harder to beat the following week.
“I think as long as we keep improving and being harder to beat week to week, then we’re going the right line.
“It’s a quality league, a league full of very, very good players and very, very good coaches.
“You look at Nottingham who we’re playing next weekend – what a superb rugby club. I played there for four years and captained the team, a club close to my heart and it’s good to see them doing well as well.”
