APART from reaching the quarter-finals of a major European competition, Wasps have another reason for targeting a few big results in the next fortnight.

They return to the Amlin Challenge Cup in the driving seat in their pool, knowing that two bonus point victories, over teams they have already hammered, will be enough to qualify them for the last eight.

That in itself is sufficient motivation, but director of rugby Dai Young admits the side’s struggles in the Premiership has placed extra emphasis on results against Rovigo tomorrow and Bordeaux next Sunday.

He said: “The momentum has been going the wrong way in the Premiership. We’re all hurting and confidence is going to be low – that goes without saying, “But it’s important to keep a bit of a buzz about the place and to keep a smile on everyone’s faces.

“It would be quite easy to get totally down about all this and then it’s going to go from bad to worse.

“If spirits drop now as well we’ll be in a difficult place, so a win is just the medicine the team needs.

“Nothing beats winning and it would be nice to go out there and get a win and get a bit of confidence and belief.”

Young is taking nothing for granted though, despite Wasps’ 38-7 victory over the Italians back in November.

He said: “They’re very dogged, they never give up and they’ve got one or two decent players.

“We have to have a good start because the longer they’re in the game the more confident they’ll get, and in most games they’ve been in it until the last 20 minutes.”

After round four, Wasps led Bayonne by just a single point in Pool 3 but the Frenchmen had a chance to reclaim the lead when they played Bayonne last night.

Young said: “We’ve done a lot of hard work to get into a strong position in Europe so it’s important to finish off these last two games and qualify for the quarter-finals.

“That’s the goal and we’ve got to be confident that even with the injuries we’ve got we can go to Rovigo and get the result we need.

“We want to give the Amlin our best shot now we’re in this position.”