Warriors alive and kicking

Worcester grabbed a crucial 10-9 triumph over Northampton to boost their plight.

Worcester Warriors secured the most important win of the Guinness Premiership season with a 10-9 triumph over Northampton Saints at Franklin's Gardens.

In a bottom-of-the-table showdown, Drew Hickey's vital 57th-minute try proved enough to clinch the Warriors' second win of the season, lifting them to within six points of Saints.

Carlos Spencer became the villain for the home side, missing three penalties - one from in front of the posts - to gift the Warriors the points.

A new year seemed to bring a new side out of Worcester, who played with adventure and defended like Trojans.

John Brain's men have a tough schedule including Wasps, Leicester and Gloucester on the horizon, but he will feel more confident after seeing his side perform to their capacity for the first time this season.

In five pre-match changes, Brain crucially included Shane Drahm and Hickey, while Saints were able to call on a host of their big names including Spencer and Ben Cohen.

Unsurprisingly the initial exchanges saw confusion over the new scrummaging rules, leading to a dull opening before Spencer started the scoring on 13 minutes.

Drahm quickly responded with a penalty of his own as Warriors looked to attack down the flanks, while Saints attempted to dominate the loose.

Sean Lamont looked particularly dangerous in the first half, combining well with Spencer, but the Kiwi could only add three more points as his concentration escaped him right in front of the posts.

Further frustration followed for the home side as they failed to capitalise on a man advantage, Aisea Havili the man to see yellow for deliberate infringement at the ruck.

True to their name the Warriors battled to stay in the game, and they were clearly buoyed by their rearguard efforts as the scores stayed at 6-3.

Then, with 17 minutes of the second half gone, Hickey pounced after a break down the left to crash past three tacklers for the game's only try.

Suddenly Worcester could sense the rare taste of victory, and Drahm's conversion meant Saints needed a try at 10-6.

Spencer hauled them to within a point with his third successful penalty, but a 73rd-minute long-range attempt fell wide to hand Worcester victory.