TONY Windo showed at the weekend just why he has been chosen to lead Worcester Warriors while Pat Sanderson is on England duty.

The 36-year-old prop led by example on the field as Warriors racked up their magnificent victory over Leicester Tigers on Friday night.

Then, as he faced the media after the match, he gave another demonstration of his leadership qualities. Rather than basking in the after-glow of a glorious win, he said there is still room for improvement.

"It was a very committed performance," he said. "That's the sort of performance we've been looking for and that is what we've been capable of.

"It's a learning curve now and we're building and hopefully we'll keep going forward. We're on a gradual up curve at the minute and we're going to keep building as best we can.

"I think there's a couple of opportunities we squandered. And that's the sort of thing we'll go away and look on and hopefully improve and that's the sort of up curve I'm talking about. We've got to start capitalising on the chances we're creating."

Similar sentiments have been coming from the Worcester dressing room for most of the season. Despite their lofty position, the consensus seems to be that Warriors have under-performed.

And they won't be resting on their laurels, even after the stunning win last Friday. On the two occasions that Leicester were down to 14 men, Worcester were unable to pile on the agony. In the end they may have won by an even greater margin.

So how is it that Warriors have gone from Premiership whipping boys this time last season to Heineken Cup contenders?

Windo has no doubts about what the secret of their success is. He said: "We're a group of blokes who want to work for each other. That's where the main quality of the side is. There are no real stars.

"We're just 15 guys who want to play for each other and we play as a team. And I think that's what has got us to where we are."

But success comes at a price for Guinness Premiership clubs and at Sixways that price is the loss of their captain and another key forward, Chris Horsman, for possibly their toughest game of the campaign at Sale tonight.

Despite their absence, Windo would not be sorry to see more of his team-mates get a slice of the action at international level.

He said: "It's good to know we're turning in performances now where guys like Pat and Chris are getting noticed.

"There are guys putting their hand up every week so hopefully there will be more of us getting some recognition."

If England were not in the middle of building a team for the next World Cup then Windo himself might have been in the shake-up.

But fans and coaches alike are delighted to have a player of his experience at Worcester as they enter a critical phase of the season.