ANDY Keast enjoyed Worcester Warriors Euro Shield semi-final success.

The Sixways head coach was delighted with his side's second-half performance as the Warriors hit back from 27-12 down at half-time, to win 43-34.

"We made too many mistakes in the first-half but the second-half display was much better," he said.

"We just wanted the players to be relaxed and enjoy the game. There was no pressure of Premiership points.

"Obviously, this competition is not a priority for us but we had to be professional and, certainly, nobody wants to lose any match.

"It was enjoyable to watch and I was pleased with the spirit which was on show. The spectators were here again to support us and I hope they got some enjoyment out of it because there were 10 tries and a match full of attacking rugby."

Keast, however, left everybody in little doubt of Worcester's main objective -- winning their relegation battle.

"We've been looking forward to our trip to Newcastle since our game with Saracens last weekend," he added.

"It's a massive game for us and we've got to go there and do a job. We started working on that this week and we will continue that process up until Sunday. This European game was about giving some players, who haven't played lately, some rugby.

"Boys get very disappointed and that's very understandable because they want to play rugby. It's waiting for the right time and, certainly, there are a few players who have held their hand up.

"It will make selection quite interesting for that Newcastle match."

On Paul Sampson's return to the starting line-up, Keast was unconvinced that the former England man had fully recovered mentally from his shoulder operation.

"Paul looked short of game-time," said Keast.

"That's understandable because he's been out for a while. He missed three tackles all on his shoulder that he's had an operation on. That would be worrying in a big game because he has to make sure he gets over the mental scars of that.

"He took his try very well, as did Jon Hylton so there are a lot of positives to take from the match.

"The players are shattered but they enjoyed the game."

Keast also confirmed that Hylton had not suffered a knee injury after being taken off on the half-hour.

"He was just shattered," he added.

"He gave away two tries just because of physical fatigue. My worry was that, when you are fatigued, you pick up injuries. I didn't want him to go backwards and I just wanted to look after him."