WHEN Tom Harding finally pulls on a Warriors shirt for a meaningful game he can only hope it will be a happier experience than the last two rugby matches he took part in.

When he made his Worcester debut in the Powergen Cup dead rubber with Newport, the novice pack was already out on its feet after being pounded for an hour by superior opponents.

But that was nothing compared to the misery he suffered in his last appearance for New Zealand provincial side North Harbour. Playing against eventual champions Auckland in the NPC semi-final, Harding's day ended with him in a dentist chair.

"I got hit in a tackle and the guy's head smashed into my top lip," he said. "It was a bit of a freakish impact and it loosened my front teeth. I had braces on at the time so they all went back behind my bottom teeth and, because I had a wire on, they wouldn't pop forward so I had to go straight off to the dentist and have the braces cut off."

The result was a fractured bone and several loose teeth. But fortunately for the engaging back-row player, everything is back in the right place and he is ready to go back into battle with his new club.

Harding decided that the chances of carving out an international career in his native New Zealand were particularly slim given that he would have to muscle past two of the world's top open-sides in Richie McCaw and Marty Hollah.

The 23-year-old has a Welsh father and an English mother and so a move to the Northern Hemisphere was a logical step.

He said: "There just seems to be a bit of a log-jam of open-sides in New Zealand at the moment.

"Given that my parents are Welsh and English I thought it was a great opportunity that existed over here."

But Harding is aware that the road ahead is a long one. Before he can think about impressing international selectors, he has to force his way into a Worcester side bristling with back-row talent.

"I certainly do have international inspirations but it's going to be a challenge to get into the Worcester side first," he said. "They have got a full complement of loose forwards and everyone seems to be doing well.

"When the team is playing well and you are getting results, it's going to be harder to get that opportunity.

"But I guess when I do get the opportunity, I'm just going to have to make sure I take it."

Harding admits it was tough to leave New Zealand but says the transition has been made easier by the fact his brother Sam plays at Northampton Saints.

The older Harding is already an All Black and Worcester fans will know all about his talents after he scored a try at Sixways in October with his first touch in English rugby.

Tom's response to that incident suggests that their fierce sibling rivalry is as strong as ever.

"That's typical of him," he said. "He'll do the least for the most reward."

Now Harding wants to show the Worcester fans what he is capable of and even the British winter can't put him off.

"It was a bit of a shock when I hopped off the plane and turned up at Worcester and there was about 3cm of snow on the ground," he said.

"But you adjust pretty quick. I grew up in Christchurch where it is pretty cold during the winter."