Newcastle Falcons Season Preview: Steve Diamond puts his faith in team bonding sessions

Newcastle Falcons Season Preview

Coach: Steve Diamond

Captain: Callum Chick

Steve Diamond opted for team bonding rather than a raft of friendlies to prepare for a season that promises to be defining for a Newcastle side that has been anchored to the bottom of the table for the last two seasons.

The Falcons did not win a league match last season and summoned Diamond just after the New Year, initially as a consultant director of rugby before he became full-time.

With relegation now more of a reality following a relaxation of some of the entry criteria for Championship sides, finishing last again may have consequences for a side that is spending below the salary cap as it strives for sustainability after a turbulent decade for the club game.

Diamond knows he cannot outspend rivals and as an experienced operator will squeeze everything out of his squad.

Pre-Season Action

Home form will determine their fate and even last season they took some toppling at Kingston Park from where only Saracens emerged unscathed.

Newcastle’s only pre-season friendly was at Diamond’s old hunting ground, Heywood Road, Sale’s ancestral home.

The Sharks started with a virtual full-strength side including George Ford, the Curry brothers, Bevan Rodd, two of the du Preez brothers, Tom Roebuck and new signing Waisea Nayacalevu.

Diamond’s first-half line-up included only three players who started the club’s opening match in the Premiership last season at Bath.

Five more came on after half-time with two others finishing a match which finished 40-39 to the home side.

Friendlies are not the most reliable indicators of how a club’s season will go but what Newcastle showed, after a season in which they only secured one try bonus point, was a potency in attack and they matched Sale on tries.

They open with Bristol at home and last Friday night they staged a trial match at Kingston Park that was billed as a True North Origin game with one side made up of players from Northumberland and Tyne and Wear and the other from Durham and Cumbria.

Preparation for the Opener

“Sale was our only pre-season game against opposition and we both agreed to go pretty much full strength,” said Diamond.

“The Origin game was intended to be intense and provide the chance for guys to stick up their hands for Bristol.”

Diamond is happy with the conditioning of his players and has been “working on their knowledge.”

He took them away for a few days, but far from visiting sunnier climes they found themselves not far from home.

“There is no real need to go to Portugal and Spain and do warm-weather training,” said Diamond.

“I do not see the point in doing all that travelling and being in strange beds for a week just to do the same practice you can here.

“We went camping, boating, canoeing and paddle-boarding.

“We camped for two nights at Penrith Rugby Club who were brilliant hosts.

“We got local chefs to come in and cook for us and it was a good three days of bonding for the squad.

“We did not see much sunshine but walked up some mountains and some are still feeling the worse for wear for that. I think the players enjoyed it and it was something different.”

New Look

Newcastle have had the biggest churn of players in the close season with 16 leaving, on top of the five who departed during last season, and 10 arriving.

Diamond has retained a spine of players who are steeped in the club: wing Adam Radwan, outside-half Brett Connon, hooker Jamie Blamire and No.8 Callum Chick.

England Under-20 World Championship winners Ben Redshaw and Oli Spencer did not feature against Sale, but new recruits Connor Doherty, Kieran Wilkinson, Alex Hearle, Luan de Bruin and Tom Gordon did along with 18-year old scrum-half Joe Davis.

Diamond saw signs at Sale of what he feels Newcastle will need in the coming nine months.

Twice they went two scores behind but whereas last season they tended to crumble, this time they rallied.

“It was a close fought game, and if they always looked to be in the ascendancy we were a different side.

“We showed the resilience we have talked about, the attack looked good and the defensive system stood up well.

“We have lots to work on but overall it was positive.”