Worcester v Saracens - Aviva Premiership match preview
Worcester head coach Richard Hill has made five changes to his line-up for the Premiership visit of Saracens on Friday.
Last Updated: 23/11/12 7:24pm
Following a break from league for the LV= Cup, Hill names Joe Carlisle, Nikki Walker and Errie Claassens in his back division.
Up front former Ireland international Neil Best make his first league start of the season while No 8 Semisi Taulava is rewarded for his displays in the LV= Cup.
On the bench, Rob O'Donnell is poised to make his first league appearance for Warriors.
Former England Under-20s full-back Ben Ransom will make his Saracens debut at Sixways.
Ransom has had to patiently wait for his chance, and has honed his skills on loan at Bedford, however he gets his chance with Alex Goode, Owen Farrell, Brad Barritt and Chris Ashton away on international duty.
Despite also missing Mouritz Botha, Mako Vunipola and Schalk Brits due to the England and South Africa clash at Twickenham, Saracens will be buoyed by the return of the likes of Matt Stevens, Steve Borthwick, Ernst Joubert and Richard Wigglesworth.
Worcester: 15 Chris Pennell, 14 Nikki Walker, 13 Josh Matavesi, 12 Joe Carlisle, 11 Errie Claassens, 10 Andy Goode, 9 Paul Hodgson, 1 Ceri Jones, 2 Ed Shervington, 3 John Andress, 4 James Percival (c), 5 Chris Jones, 6 Neil Best, 7 Matt Kvesic, 8 Semisi Taulava.
Replacements: 16 Aleki Lutui, 17 Rob O'Donnell, 18 James Currie, 19 Dean Schofield, 20 Sam Betty, 21 Jonny Arr, 22 Alex Grove, 23 Andy Short
Saracens: 15 Ben Ransom, 14 David Strettle, 13 Joel Tomkins, 12 Kameli Ratuvou, 11 Duncan Taylor, 10 Nils Mordt, 9 Richard Wigglesworth, 1 Matt Stevens, 2 Jamie George, 3 Carlos Nieto, 4 Steve Borthwick, 5 Alistair Hargreaves, 6 Jackson Wray, 7 Andy Saull, 8 Ernst Joubert.
Replacements: 16 John Smit, 17 Nick Auterac, 18 Lorenzo Romano, 19 Eoin Sheriff, 20 Will Fraser, 21 Neil de Kock, 22 Sam Stanley, 23 James Short
What they said...
Worcester Warriors head coach Richard Hill
"Our selection is geared towards attack and we have made several changes. We need to go out and attack the opposition and do that with some confidence.
"I'm looking for big ball carriers in the forwards and have put a talented attacking team out in the three-quarters. Our strength-in-depth is now much better than it was last year because we have much more competition for places."
