IN a season of constant change number eight Jim Jenner has proved to be a rock in Worcester's back row.

As players have come and gone, and while injuries and suspensions have struck, Jenner has remained at the heart of the action, missing just one game all season.

In fact he has been at the heart of the squad ever since he was snapped up three seasons ago after spells with Bristol and Exeter.

This term he has also risen to the top of the try scoring charts with nine but acknowledges much of that is due to the efforts of the entire team, especially the scrummaging of his fellow forwards.

"I was pleased to get two tries against Wakefield but they were due to a lot of team work, I'm just lucky enough to finish a lot of them," he said.

"But I'm still pleased with my form, it's gone from strength to strength and I'm on top of my game looking forward to bigger occasions in years to come and developing my career with Worcester."

That means promotion this term and although Worcester are now back in the race, Jenner admits the challenge gets tougher from here starting with the trip to Coventry.

"It gets more difficult but Exeter at home will be a totally different game to away and we also play London Welsh at home having beaten them without too much difficulty at Old Deer Park.

"The only really big game, and the hardest, is against Rotherham but we're quite confident about all the games.

"Rotherham away is an opportunity for us to show that this league is ours."

But the run-in has a similar feel to last season when Worcester were faced with another three-way battle against Rotherham and Bristol.

They started the spring as league leaders but fell away badly to finish 10 points behind both of their two rivals.

Stronger

But Jenner feels that the disappointment will help to spur the squad onto success this time around.

"We're much stronger and better drilled than last time," he added.

"And last time we were top for a long time so had the pressure on us as the others began to catch us up. Now it's the other way round which is much better.

"This time we're the hunters rather than the hunted."

Thursday, March 9, 2000.