Wasps climbed to third in the table after a laboured victory over the Premiership's bottom club but their owner, Chris Wright, warned that a place in next season's Heineken Cup would be forfeited unless there was a marked improvement in their away form.

Wasps have won six of their seven home league matches but their opening-day success against Saracens at Twickenham has been followed by five consecutive away defeats. They are in contention for a play-off place only through their form at home and their habit of picking up winning and losing bonus points.

"An appearance in the Heineken Cup is essential for a club with the ambition of Wasps and my message to every single player picked to play in the coming weeks is that you are not just playing to beat the opposition on the day, you are also playing for your opportunity in Europe next season and probably your international places as well," said Wright. "We will need to win five of our six remaining away games to be sure of competing in European rugby's premier event next season."

Worcester, in contrast, have been more effective on the road than at home. Whereas their relative success in their two previous Premiership campaigns was based on their form at Sixways, their two wins this term have come on their travels and that was reflected in the way they took the game to Wasps initially, meriting their 8-3 interval lead. They would have earned a deserved draw had not Shane Drahm missed two kicks at goal while Alex King was landing five out of five.

Drahm, who opened the scoring with a well worked drop-goal, played a pivotal part in the game's two tries, which came either side of the interval. He created the first, picking up a King kick and running 40 yards before floating a pass towards Kai Horstmann on the right wing which Tom Voyce deflected into the No8's hands, but the full-back's mistake provided Wasps with the opportunity to take the lead 70 seconds after the restart. Drahm ran the ball out of defence and was dispossessed near the halfway line, whereupon Wasps rumbled towards the Worcester line, then moved the ball left where Danny Cipriani, making his first Premiership start, cut inside and wriggled out of Drahm's tackle before touching down.

Worcester looked slightly more dangerous with the ball in hand and nearly snatched victory at the end when James Brown made a clean break into the Wasps 25 only to find himself without a support runner, Josh Lewsey's jarring tackle forcing Gary Trueman to knock on. Their 11th defeat of the campaign resulted from lack of discipline, especially at the breakdown, where most of the eight penalties they conceded were awarded as they tried to counter Wasps' pick-and-go tactic.

Chris Fortey was sent to the sin-bin for killing the ball on his own line whereas Wasps were more discreet in their infringing. Lawrence Dallaglio fought a running duel throughout the afternoon with his fellow captain, Pat Sanderson - both were last week dropped from the England squad - and was fortunate that he pressed his elbow into the Warriors flanker's face just before the referee Tony Spreadbury spotted them having a tussle off the ball on the floor.

Dallaglio thought he had scored his side's second try, only to be called back because Eoin Reddan's pass had been deemed forward, but it was a day of few chances and little open play, even though the pitch remained firm throughout.

Brown showed occasional menace but it always seemed likely that a boot, rather than hands, would decide the outcome. The Warriors were unfortunate that King, not the most consistent of goalkickers, was unerringly accurate and the outside-half's three penalties in 24 second-half minutes meant the visitors were caught between clinging on to their bonus point or going for the victory.

Wasps' director of rugby, Ian McGeechan, said that the England management needed to look after the national side's new captain, Phil Vickery, who finished the game with a sore shoulder after his club had done him no favours by picking Peter Bracken at loose-head prop. Bracken is a tight-head who found himself up against one of the best scrummagers in the league, Chris Horsman, and was quickly found out as the home scrum disintegrated. It was only when Tim Payne came on in the second period and Horsman left the field injured that Wasps started to get a grip at forward.

"We are disappointed to leave with only a point as it was a game we could have won," said Worcester's director of rugby, John Brain, whose side remain bottom, four points behind Northampton. "I am confident we will start to climb the table because we are a long way from being the worst team in the Premiership."

Wasps Cipriani; Thrower (Lewsey, 70), Waldouck, Waters, Voyce; King, Reddan; Bracken (Payne, 43), Ibanez (Ward, 43), Vickery, Purdy, Skivington (Palmer, 69), Haskell, Rees (O'Connor, 80), Dallaglio (capt).

Try Cipriani. Con King. Pens King 4.

Worcester Drahm; Delport, Rasmussen, Trueman, Garvey; Brown, M Powell; Morris, C Fortey (Lutui, 61), Horsman (Taumoepeau, 52), Gillies, Collier (Murphy, 61), Hickey, Sanderson (capt), Horstmann.

Try Horstmann. Pens Drahm 2. Drop-goal Drahm.

Sin-bin Fortey.

Referee A Spreadbury (Somerset). Attendance 7,224.