While several of his star names will be using Saturday's final match of the Guinness Premiership season to bid farewell to Sixways, Mike Ruddock will be adopting a rather less sentimental attitude as he considers his line-up for the European Challenge Cup final.

Shane Drahm, Drew Hickey and Thinus Delport are all playing the last home match of their Worcester careers before indulging their yen for life in Japan and, in a pleasing piece of symmetry, will face the club's first ever topflight opponents Newcastle Falcons.

The visitors will also use the occasion as an opportunity to thank long-serving players like Toby Flood and Mathew Tait before they head off for pastures new but unlike Worcester their season ends at 5pm.

For his part the Warriors director of rugby is able to use the 22nd and final league game to not only leapfrog Newcastle into tenth place but prepare his team for the showdown with Bath on May 25.

With that in mind he will field most but not all of his current first-choice players with a view to giving long-term injury victims Chris Horsman and Netani Talei their first starts in several months.

Both players made their comebacks in last weekend's narrow victory over Bristol although Horsman has not begun a game since October 12 and Talei's last start came on December 23 against London Irish.

But with his nagging knee problems behind him the Fijian is ready to stake a claim for a place at Kingsholm and Ruddock believes the former Doncaster man could be the missing piece in the jigsaw.

"The only way Netani has got a chance of starting in the cup final is with a game under his belt," Ruddock said. "I need to see what his form is like although it is a tough call on the current back row who have been very consistent all season for us. He has been quite a big miss because he is a quality player and is an international back row forward who has played at the World Cup. As the ground gets a bit harder he is going to benefit and have more of an impact on games."

While there is still some debate about where Talei should play, Ruddock is clear as to the role the dynamic back-rower should play. "I would give him more of a free, roving role and would be looking for him to pop up in midfield more than close to the other back rows.

"He has good mobility for a big guy, with a great step and acceleration. He gives me something extra and the possible X Factor. That might put more pressure on the rest of the back three so we'll have to get some balance there."

Talei's inclusion should mean Hickey will have to be content with a place on the bench with Pat Sanderson and Kai Horstmann set to provide the requisite balance.

Tevita Taumoepeau will step down at tight-head to allow Horsman the chance to build his match fitness though he will be doing so merely as a precaution. After an outstanding season the Tongan will be one of the first names on Ruddock's team sheet for the final and can look at this weekend as a well-deserved break.

Worcester are in the Challenge Cup final after a resounding win over Newcastle who were a set of individuals rather than a team.

They had an impresive win over Leicester last weekend and although they were well beaten by Wasps on Wednesday night it was something of a scratch side they put out.

Ruddock prefers to focus on the Tigers' victory during which he detected a more purposeful approach to the game: "Against us they tried to get down the sides but they were a lot more direct against Leicester.. I expect something in between this weekend. They will want to go out on a high and some of the players who are leaving will want to do so on a good note."