GORDON Ross has tipped Piri Weepu to be a driving force for London Welsh in the Aviva Premiership.

Scrum half Weepu saw his Exiles debut end in a 52-0 home defeat to Exeter Chiefs on Sunday – not the 31st birthday present he had hoped for.

But assistant coach Ross says Welsh will bounce back and expects 71-cap former All Black Weepu to be at the forefront of that.

The 2011 World Cup winner had last played for Auckland Blues on June 28 before his Exiles bow, but went straight into the team against Exeter.

“There were question marks about Piri because he hadn’t played for a little while,” said Ross.

“But I thought his speed to the breakdown was excellent.

“He was a second ahead because of his intelligence.”

Ross said Welsh had not expected Weepu to be an automatic choice for the first match as he only arrived in the country a fortnight previously.

But he explained: “The way he came in and trained these last couple of weeks, we couldn’t not pick him.

“If there was any doubt about him, the way he trained meant we had to put him in.

“He has made a big impact on the squad and we are only going to improve with him in the side.”

Weepu and ex-England international Olly Barkley formed an experienced half-back pairing for Welsh against the Chiefs.

And if the Exiles are to upset the odds and retain their Premiership status, the pair’s axis will be crucial, starting at Bath on Saturday.

“I thought they did very well,” said Ross.

“In the first 20-30 minutes, they both kicked very well and we reproduced a couple of moves from training.

“There were certainly two or three try-scoring opportunities that were wasted.”

But he added: “It is not just about those two.

“It is also up to the other 13 or 14 players to make sure that we achieve our standards.”

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