Worcester's French Test

And they kicked off with a win that means they travel to highly charged Parc Municipal des Sports on Saturday with a 14-points advantage.

But while Worcester are European newcomers, Keast has first hand knowledge of what they will be up against in the second leg.

He was coach of NEC Harlequins in 1997 when they lost to Brive and coach of London Irish the following season when they beat the French club on their own patch.

"I certainly know what to expect when we run out against Brive - it will be a terrific atmosphere and a great experience for the Worcester players," he said.

"The bands never stop playing and it is literally a wall of noise that hits you from start to finish. We have to go into their backyard and absorb everything their fans' base and the hostilities have to offer. It is going to be great, a super occasion that we intend to enjoy to the full."

And in addition to Keast's own inside knowledge, Worcester have others who can call on past experiences of playing Brive.

Former French international and Stade Francais Paris centre Thomas Lombard is one and prop Steve Sparks is another.

"Thomas obviously knows Brive and their players extremely well and on top of that his father has been sending over videos of their games to help us prepare," said Keast.

"Steve had two or three seasons with Castres Olympique so he also knows a fair bit about Brive."

And as to that 14-point advantage Keast believes it could turn out to be "very small because of the way they can turn it on at home - or not so small if we perform.

"In the first leg at Worcester it is fair to say it was probably the perfect type of day for us to play a French side - lousy conditions - but we still outscored a side that is sixth in the French Champions by four tries to nil and that was extremely pleasing.

"People might say they rested a few of their players but so did we. Now comes the real test for us on Saturday evening."