ADAM Black insists defeat is not an option for Warriors in tomorrow night’s Championship play-off final.
The reliable loosehead is retiring after the crucial match and has no plans to end his distinguished career on such a crushing low note.
The 35-year-old will run out with his Worcester colleagues one more time before heading for a new life in Cornwall, where he and his wife Naomi will be running a luxury yurt campsite.
While Black is one of the main jokers in the Sixways pack, he is deadly serious about tomorrow’s crunch clash, insisting he would be haunted by a defeat.
The former Newport Gwent Dragons, Sale and Wasps front-rower explained: “If we didn’t win tomorrow night, it would play on my mind for a very long time — especially as I couldn’t rectify it now I’ve decided to retire.
“Worcester is a great team to be in, but it is important when there is so much pressure on us to get promoted that you are able to have a laugh to.
“Otherwise, it can all get very serious, but I have no doubts that we will get promoted tomorrow night.
“I had seven really good years in south Wales with the Dragons and my last game for them was a play-off to qualify for the Heineken Cup, so this is a similar scenario. It is very important for Worcester to go up, just like it was for the Dragons to reach the Heineken Cup, so this type of game is not a new experience for me.”
Having called time on his rugby career, Black and his family will be moving to Bude on the north Cornwall coast to develop their new business — a luxury yurt and cottage getaway site.
The popular prop added: “It was a tough decision to make — especially when Richard Hill was putting a contract in front of me and saying ‘sign this’ — but what I am going into is really exciting and it is definitely a case of looking forward rather than back.
“When Naomi and I went on honeymoon to Canada we stayed in something similar to our yurts on Vancouver Island and thought it would be a great idea to bring back to England.
“We have bought the site, which already exists as a campsite, but we will be changing it to have luxury yurts, which are 19-foot across with wood-burners and proper beds. It is aimed at couples and families, but I’m sure a few of the boys will be coming to stay too!
“With two young girls, it is a lifestyle change for them — we will be less than a mile from the beach and will have room for animals too.
“Naomi has been fantastic and has done a lot of hard work to allow me to concentrate on rugby and getting Warriors promoted.
“We play the Pirates tomorrow, then have a team meeting on Thursday, before the end-of-season awards night on Friday. After that, I’ll be driving down to Cornwall to start work.”
For more information on Black’s new business venutre, e-mail him on adam@ east-thornecornwall.co.uk or search for ‘East Thorne — Cornwall’ on Facebook.
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