SCRUM-HALF Francois Hougaard believes there is no reason why Worcester Warriors should be scared of high-flying Harlequins ahead of today’s Gallagher Premiership trip to The Stoop (3pm).

Quins have been undergoing a renaissance since Paul Gustard ditched his role as England defence coach last summer to take charge of the 2012 champions.

Aside from front-runners Exeter Chiefs and Saracens, third-placed Quins head a congested pack of teams battling it out for the other two play-off spots.

But Hougaard has not given up hope of guiding second-from-bottom Warriors into the upper echelons of the table this season and urged his team-mates to show no fear against Gustard’s men.

“It does not matter what team Harlequins put out, they have got a structure and DNA and have proved why they are such a great side,” Hougaard said.

“The Premiership is an unforgiving competition so you can’t make any mistakes.

“If you make silly errors you will find yourself under your posts, especially going up against Harlequins this weekend.

“They have improved a lot, especially in defence so it is going to be a really tough challenge.

“But that’s why we play the game. We want to play against the best teams out there and test ourselves.

“There is no reason why we should take a step back and be scared of playing a side that has massively improved on defence.

“We should relish the challenge and show them why we are also an improved side.”

Warriors kicked off 2019 with a 21-19 victory over Bath to see them move four points clear of bottom club Newcastle Falcons.

They then saw off Ospreys and Stade Francais to seal a home European Challenge Cup quarter-final before defeating Wasps to progress to the Premiership Cup last four.

A 38-22 semi-final loss to Saracens at Sixways last week ended their four-match winning streak but Hougaard is excited ahead of a block of four league games.

“It’s a massively important part of the season,” said the 30-year-old.

“For us the key has got to be consistency which we have not been throughout this season. But we are still driving to be consistent.

"If we focus on what we need to do and do it really well week in week out we will get that consistency and be able to beat top sides home and away.”

Warriors beat Quins 20-13 at Sixways in November but have struggled on their travels this term, returning pointless from their past four away matches in the league.

“We are never satisfied to lose but bonus points are always valuable when you are playing great sides away from home,” Hougaard said.

“We will always push to raise our standards and put in a massive performance. If we do that and they play better than us what more can you do?”

Speaking to the Worcester News in pre-season Hougaard was confident Warriors could end the campaign in the top six but they were eight points adrift of that target before last night's games.

Asked whether he still felt a top-six finish was achievable Hougaard replied: “If we believe in what we do we will definitely have a chance.

“We were in a pretty great position and then had two slip-ups in a row.

“But that’s where the consistency comes in and that’s what we are striving for.”