DIRECTOR of rugby Alan Solomons said Worcester Warriors’ sloppy start “set the tone” as Harlequins capitalised on mistakes to claim a 47-33 home victory in the Gallagher Premiership.

Francois Hougaard gifted Joe Marchant a try inside the first 50 seconds before a slip-up in midfield resulted in Gabriel Ibitoye crossing on eight minutes.

Warriors were then left with a mountain to climb as Mike Brown and Jack Clifford struck either side of Jack Singleton’s score to move Quins 28-7 in front at half-time.

Although the hosts went on to seal an emphatic triumph with further tries from Danny Care, Ben Tapuai and Jamie Lang Worcester battled back to ensure they did not leave The Stoop empty handed.

Bryce Heem, Josh Adams, Michael Heaney and Tom Howe crossed to salvage a “vital” bonus point for second-from-bottom Warriors.

“In those opening eight minutes we had a double error and suddenly we were 14-0 down,” Solomons said.

“It was almost like we were a little shell-shocked by that as they then got two more tries in that first half.

“We went in 21 points down but we said ‘Don’t play catch up' as it’s not unassailable.

“We got a try in the 50th minute but when we gave them that try in the 54th minute the match had gone.

“The key for us was making sure we got at least one bonus point which we did do with those tries and I thought we had a real chance of getting a second right at the end.

“I thought if we had not made one or two defensive lapses we could have got within the seven which would have been a result in the circumstances.

“But it was that start to the game that set the tone.”

It was the first time Warriors had picked up a point on the road since their win over Leicester Tigers at Welford Road in September.

With bottom club Newcastle Falcons losing 30-13 at Bath, Worcester’s flurry of tries in the second half saw them move five points clear of the drop zone.

“In the first 40 we didn’t play well, we were put on the back foot and the tone was set by the those two early tries,” Solomons said.

“But we regrouped at half-time and I thought we were coming back really nicely until we gave away that try to make it 34-12.

“Bonus points are vital.

“We didn’t deserve to win the game, that’s absolutely clear, but we had the opportunity to get the second bonus point and it’s disappointing that we didn’t get it.”

Quins head of rugby Paul Gustard said he was “very happy” to see his side secure a maximum-point victory to return to third in the table but “not so happy” to witness Worcester score five tries.

“Worcester never gave up but they also got cut right, left and centre – the same as we did so we looked like two tired teams that had not played for a while,” Gustard added.

“Worcester gave most of their team a rest last week for the Premiership Cup and looked a bit rusty and for the first time this season our replacements didn’t have the impact that we would normally expect from them.

“That’s a sign of rustiness, but we got the win which is the most important thing.”