HARLEQUINS director of rugby Conor O’Shea has backed Warriors to break into the Aviva Premiership top six.

A failure to take Worcester up the table and into Heineken Cup qualification has been cited as one of the main reasons behind Richard Hill’s departure.

However, O’Shea, who has presided over leading reigning Premiership Quins to three trophies in as many seasons, insists the Sixways set-up is so good it is only a matter of time until success comes to the club.

He said: “You look at the near-misses Worcester have had this season — Bath at the start of the season was a game they won. They were robbed in that game and again in the second match.

“They are trying to break away from the traditional view people have of Worcester.

“There is 100 per cent the potential at Worcester for them to break into the top six.

“You can’t have a club as good as this that is so well supported and with all the right structures around the academy and not move up the league. I said to the boys in the dressing room that Bath beat Leicester and Gloucester beat Saracens on Saturday — this league is ferocious and if you have the number of one and two-point losses Worcester have had this season, it will come back to bite you.

“Anyone can beat anyone and if a side think they will get it easy here next year with Dean Ryan coming in, it’s not for the faint- hearted!

“Dean will be brilliant here, but I feel sorry for Hilly as he’s an incredible bloke, so it would be wrong to say too much.”

O’Shea added: “David Lemi didn’t play on Saturday, but it was great to see young Ben Howard playing and being given his head.

“We know Josh Drauniniu too — he was at Quins for my first six weeks and he is a very good broken-field runner.

“It made for a good game, but I’m not sure the defensive coaches — Phil Larder and Dippy (Tony Diprose) — will be too happy.”