Newcastle Falcons

Club Details

Kingston Park
Brunton Road
Kenton Bank Foot
Newcastle
NE13 8AF
 
Stadium Capacity: 10,000 
Website: www.newcastle-falcons.co.uk
Founded: 1995 (Gosforth formed in 1877)

- 2006/7 Season Preview -

Last time around: A late rally from the Falcons took them to seventh place in the league after an injury-ravaged squad once again seemed to lack the extra touches of quality required to step into the top half of the table. The absences of the two local heroes, Jonny Wilkinson and Mathew Tait, for long periods of the season did not help, but they probably would not have made much difference in the end as the Falcons' forwards were too often turned over. In Europe, a relatively easy Challenge Cup pool was negotiated, as was a drenched quarter-final against Connacht. But in the semi-final, that gap in Premiership class was once again evident as the Falcons fell at home to London Irish.

This time? There has been a change in coaching personnel at Kingston Park, for the first time in the professional era. It remains to be seen whether John Fletcher will be able to get more out of the squad that Rob Andrew did, but once again, a fully-fit Wilkinson/Tait axis is crucial to Newcastle's chances. None of the new players are likely to be regular first-teamers, so Fletcher is relying on last season's crop to stay injury-free and take them through this time. In Europe, the draw pits them against old foes Brive, Italian club Padova and Top 14 new boys Montauban, who are making quite an impression in France. It's a tough one, but manageable.

Coach: John Fletcher took the reigns after Andrew's departure to grander things at the RFU, but he has been with the club just as long as his predecessor and was described by chairman Dave Thompson as a 'natural successor'. Fletcher is responsible for the emergence of so many Falcons academy players to maturity - Tait being the most notable - that the Falcons released seven senior players at the end of last season to cope with the swelling squad numbers, and now Fletcher will be the one taking those players through the next stage of their careers.

Captain: There are few honours in the game that fullback Matthew Burke has not won. A Rugby World Cup winner in 1999 as a part of his 81-cap run with Australia, scoring 25 points in the final. Fifth-highest all-time Test match points scorer, and second-highest of all time in Australia. The Waratahs player of the year now wins the 'Matt Burke Trophy', such was the legacy he left in Sydney. Twice voted player of the year at Kingston Park, the captaincy for Burke is almost as natural an accession as Fletcher's is to the coaching role.

One to watch: Wilkinson and Tait are so rarely seen in a Newcastle shirt that they almost qualify for this, but Toby Flood - in between the two at inside centre - is also rising to prominence. Equally adroit at fly-half, as he showed in the European Challenge Cup quarter-final win over Connacht last year, an inside back-three of Wilkinson, Flood and Tait is something to look forward to. They are all English too, something that should not be lost on observers.

Final 2006/7 league position prediction: 6th
totalbet.com prediction (29/8): 25-1 to finish first 

In: Brent Wilson (Leicester Tigers), John Rudd (Northmapton Saints), Jason Oakes (Otley), Jon Golding (Rotherham)

Out: Stuart Grimes (Border Reivers), Owen Finegan (Leinster), Dave Walder (Wasps), Stuart Mackie (London Irish), Colin Charvis, Tino Paoletti, Jason Smithson, Shaun Richardson, Grant Anderson, Luke Gross, Mark Wilkinson (all released - Wilkinson is now a coach))

Colours: Black and white

Tickets: £12 - 40

Travel connections: Newcastle has an airport, which is only a ten-minute drive and a five-minute metro ride from the ground, and there is a regular bus service. There is a major rail station, but allow plenty of time, as you will have to make a half-hour Metro journey from town to the Kingston Park station, and the bus journey takes even longer. The ground is a little fiddly to get to by road, and there isn't much parking.