London Wasps director of rugby Dai Young believes that qualifying for the Heineken Cup this season would have come too soon.
The London outfit lost 37-24 to fellow European hopefuls Exeter Chiefs at Adams Park on Sunday, leaving the side unable to finish in a qualifying spot.
However, Young feels that missing out on the competition is a blessing in disguise.
"If I was totally honest, it would have been great to be in the top six but I would be concerned because I don't think we're ready for Heineken Cup rugby," Young told BBC Sport.
"The last home game last season, we were playing Newcastle to stay in this league and we have made strides this season but there's still work to be done. Come February, we had put ourselves in a pretty good position and I was accused of dampening expectations - but I was being realistic.
"Credit to Exeter, they are a good side but they didn't bring anything we didn't expect. I felt today that a lot of senior players fell off a lot of tackles which you would expect them to make."
Wasps are now eighth in the Aviva Premiership table.
Matt Cotton
