Wasps director of rugby Ian McGeechan has said that players away on international duty are being sorely missed.
Wasps just one point off the bottom
After watching his beleaguered Wasps side slump to a 32-10 Guinness Premiership defeat to Harlequins, director of rugby Ian McGeechan said that players away on international duty were missed.
The defending champions were without nine internationals ahead of Sunday's visit to the Twickenham Stoop and paid the price with a comprehensive defeat which left them one point off the bottom of the table.
McGeechan admitted: "It does make a difference with the experience that's there.
"We know we always have the biggest challenge when international rugby is on."
Nevertheless, McGeechan admitted his side should have done better against a Harlequins outfit whose victory took them up to second place in the table.
"We missed too many tackles in the first half and had a mountain to climb after that," he continued.
"The players stuck at it and did better in the second half but we have to do it for 80 minutes.
"There were a lot of easy points given away - six penalties. We will look at what we are doing. at the moment. We aren't happy with some of the things."
Reflecting on Wasps' league position, he added: "No other team is going to help us. We have to make concentrate on what we are doing and make sure we are competitive and accurate, which we weren't in the first half."
Positive gloss
Perhaps unsurprisingly, Dean Richards put a positive gloss on his own selection headaches, the Harlequins boss missing five potential starters on international duty and a further half-dozen through injury.
Richards had to make another change just two hours before kick-off when winger Seb Stegmann dropped out with 'flu.
The reshuffle in the backs saw Nick Evans switch to full-back from fly-half for his injury-delayed home debut.
But the former All Black responded with a man-of-the-match performance - Evans' haul of 19 points including a stunning first-half try.
Richards said: "It wasn't just about him and his finishing. It was the quality of the rugby that led up to it.
"Our scrum dominated their their scrum which must have been disappointing for them.
"The brand of rugby we are playing at the moment gives you an idea of the feeling in the camp."
Richards said of the the absence of his own stars: "You always miss them but it's an opportunity for other people which some of these young guys have taken."
