Sixways may not exactly be bristling with confidence at present. As the season draws to a close on Saturday, though, it's worth remembering just how good it has been.

Ultimately, Worcester were found wanting in the two matches which mattered but that should not detract from the foundations which have been built this season.

Some of the play witnessed at London Welsh, at Manchester was astonishing while the guts shown at Plymouth and Exeter illustrates just how much progress has been made this season.

The key now is to ensure that the progress is not binned. Worcester, because of the ludicrous system they are part of, have been guilty in the past of chopping and changing prematurely in their eagerness for Premiership status.

Now, with so much uncertainty in the air, it is a time for clarity of thought. It is a time for chairman Cecil Duckworth to be decisive and show the levels of commitment he has expected of players in the past.

True, we do not know what the club will be playing for next season. We may not know that until June. That, though, doesn't stop you from committing to Worcester Rugby Club. It doesn't prevent you from taking the bull by the horns and making the first moves.

The priority has to be to secure the coaching staff for next season. John Brain and Andy Keast may have voiced their concerns about coaching for a club that is denied the ambition of promotion but, at the very least next season, they could hope for a play-off spot.

The coaching team of Brain, Keast, Billy McGinty and Peter Finch have worked tirelessly this season and to lose those levels of continuity would be a tragedy. Indeed, it begs the question -- what was it all for if you are now going to walk away from such foundations?

"The club is at a real crossroads," said Brain, Worcester's director of rugby.

"Is it serious about its future as a professional rugby club? Is it committed to going forward or is it going to say no, that's enough.

"Is the club now going to say National One is good enough for Worcester?"

"Professional rugby is all about budgets. Once you know that, it gives you an idea as to whether you can compete.

"What we have tried to do this season is improve our players by coaching them. We've added value to a number of players. The harsh truth is, though, that in most sports the most expensive team wins the prizes.

"Gloucester have the highest wage bill in the Premiership and are top. Rotherham are the same in our league."

Players will undoubtedly leave in the summer. Ben Hinshelwood -- Worcester's jewel in the crown -- is a free agent and has the world at his feet. Nobody, though, is irreplaceable. Worcester thought Andrew Higgins could not be replaced until Hinshelwood came along.

There will be natural wastage but, with a record number of Premiership players and academy youngsters likely to be available in the summer as the top clubs slash budgets, Worcester are in a prime position to reinforce their squad.

This is a pivotal time for the Sixways club. They simply have to take the lead. We are all waiting for the results of the RFU inquiry into Rotherham's affairs before we can focus on the future but, even if that fails to help Worcester, plans need to be in place for next season.

This was never going to be straightforward. The odds are stacked against any club rising through the leagues and taking their place in the Premiership because the big boys look after themselves.

Parachute payments mean that the unevenness is perpetuated season upon season and any club falling from the Premiership is guaranteed the finance to blow away their main promotion rivals. We only have to look at Rotherham this season for that. The nonsense which is spouted about the club wanting it more, doing it for the town is exposed by the massive wages they can offer their players, eclipsing Worcester's budget by some distance.

Against all the odds, though. That has to be the motivation for everyone at Sixways. Just how good would it feel to smash through the doors of the Premiership Bastille and give them a revolutionary bloody nose? It would be an extraordinary achievement and one which could yet be on next season.

Bristol are in free-fall at present. Relegation would be a killer-blow for them such are their debts and parachute payments are unlikely to slow their high speed crash to earth. Of course, we cannot look to the system for guidance about the future but, with so many clubs on the brink, it could be only a matter of time until a restructure is in place.

Time has always been the enemy of Worcester. They have constantly been playing catch-up as they looked at the promotion clock ticking away. Sometimes, however, you have to have faith in yourself and believe in your dreams in spite of Worcester's world collapsing post Rotherham.

Promotion was was never going to be easy. There were always going to be setbacks and this season has been no different.

The dream can still be realised. It is now a matter of courage and conviction.