Newcastle Falcons - Pre Season 2014 - USE SEASON THREAD NOW

by Geordie Thu 24 Apr 2014, 1:29 pm

First topic message reminder :

Manager: Dean Richards
Head Coach: John Wells
Forwards Coach: John Wells
Defence Coach: Graham Steadman
Attack Coach: Dave Walder

Current Squad:
Forwards
Props: Keiron Brookes, Scott Wilson, Rob Vickers , Oliver Tomaszczyk Eric Fry, James Hallam (On loan to London Scottish)
Hookers: Matt Thompson (On loan Darlington), Scott Lawson, George McGuigan, David Nelson, Rob Hawkins
Second Rows: Scott MacLeod, Dom Barrow, Callum Green, Kane Thompson, Josh Furno, Uili Kolo'ofai, Glen Youngs, Will Witty, Sean Robinson (On Loan to Rotherham)
Back Row: Ally Hogg, Will Welch, Richard Mayhew, Andy Saull, Mark Wilson, Chris York, Dan Temm, Ben Morris (On Loan to Rotherham)

Backs
SH's: Warren Fury, Mike Blair, Ruki Tipuna, Andy Davies (On Loan to Rotherham)
Fh's: Rory Clegg, Phil Godman, Craig Willis
Centres: Juan Pablo Socino, Jamie Helleur, Adam Powell, Danny Barnes, Gonzalo Tiesi, Andy Tuilagi, Chris Harris (On Loan to Rotherham)Wing: Alex Tuilagi, Noah Cato, Zac Kibirige, Sinoti Sinoti, Sean Brown, Tom Penny, Lee Smith
FB's: Tom Catterick, Alex Tait, Simon Hammersley

by Geordie Thu 15 May 2014, 12:26 pm

Probably right i would say. Vickers must have been close i would have thought.

by Geordie Tue 20 May 2014, 10:21 am

Well season is over...probably made most of our signings....what about those out of contract. Who would you keep?

Out of contract Summer 2014 - Yet to Re-Sign:
Grant Shiells
Oliver Tomaszczyk
Gary Strain
Sean Tomes
Ian Nagle (Trial till end of season)
Harry Spencer (Trial till end of season)
Chris York
Ryan Shortland.

by Sgt_Pooly Tue 20 May 2014, 10:40 am

Grant Shiells
Oliver Tomaszczyk
~~Gary Strain~~
~~Sean Tomes~~
~~Ian Nagle (Trial till end of season)~~
~~Harry Spencer (Trial till end of season)~~
Chris York
~~Ryan Shortland..~~

About right?

by Geordie Tue 20 May 2014, 11:05 am

I think pretty much spot on mate.

I have a feeling we'll keep 2/3 of those with Shiells on his way.

And obviously i deliberately missed out Joel from that list.

by Sgt_Pooly Tue 20 May 2014, 11:07 am

It'll be a shame if he does but he's hardly played this season.

Tomas is a solid TH and York has looked classy when he's played, the others are either not good enough or have been replaced with better players I think.

by Geordie Tue 20 May 2014, 11:22 am

Yeah i think thats totally fair Sarge.

Shiells seems to have this back problem. Im just curious how bad it is or if its fixed?

It would leave us with Vickers , Fry and Hallam as our senior LH's. I have to admit, Vickers has proved me wrong and played very well. Fry's scrummaging is a huge concern but his work around the park at the breakdown etc is supposed to be very impressive...and Hallam is a work in progress / will he make it type.

by Sgt_Pooly Tue 20 May 2014, 11:24 am

You'd hope we've got a LH and FH coming in to complete the signings.

by Geordie Tue 20 May 2014, 11:27 am

Yeah that would be a hope but im hesitant about expecting the LH. I do expect a new FH and will ask questions if we dont get one. I think its clear Joel is going to be away.

It'll be interesting to see how young Willis the academy FH is introduced next season aswell. Theres interesting rumours about him...that he's got some high potential. Maybe a run out in the Developement team and the odd meaningless cup game in Spain?

by Geordie Wed 21 May 2014, 4:30 pm

I see Harry Spencer has followed Alex Crocket out the door.

by Geordie Thu 22 May 2014, 11:02 am

Sean Tomes confirmed as gone aswell. The exodus continues.

by Sgt_Pooly Thu 22 May 2014, 11:05 am

Good to see really GF, if they're not making an impact we can free up funds for somebody who will.

by Geordie Thu 22 May 2014, 11:37 am

Yeah and i think lock is an area we are particularly strong in now...

Furno, Barrow, Green, McKensie, McLeod, plus Glen Young and Witty in the academy.

by Geordie Fri 23 May 2014, 7:52 pm

Great to see young Glen Young called up to Scotland U20s for the JWC. Our Second rows are looking strong for the future.

The Falcons academy is flying mightily again Very Happy

by Geordie Fri 30 May 2014, 8:06 am

I see Andy Tuilagi is playing for Samoa v Japan in a friendly today.

The Samoa team is mostly made up of local samoan based players as its outside the IRB window.

And Chris York has re-signed.

by Sgt_Pooly Fri 30 May 2014, 9:03 am

Good news about York, good player

by Geordie Fri 30 May 2014, 9:13 am

You know ive just posted on the Unoffy....regarding Joel.

Joel divides opinions...some think he his god, others think hes too lightweight and inconsistant. I would still keep him and give him gametime.

However m thoughts were, young Craig Willis is the next in line, playing in the A team several times last season, and at 2/3 years younger, though hes the same height as Joel he is 12kg heavier.

Is there any chance Dean may think he is a better option. Maybe his game control is better etc? Just a thought, as i havent actually seen Willis play.

by HammerofThunor Fri 30 May 2014, 11:57 am

GeordieFalcon wrote:Great to see young Glen Young called up to Scotland U20s for the JWC. Our Second rows are looking strong for the future.

The Falcons academy is flying mightily again

Shhh, they'll hear you

by **George Carlin** Fri 30 May 2014, 2:18 pm

GeordieFalcon wrote:Great to see young Glen Young called up to Scotland U20s for the JWC. Our Second rows are looking strong for the future.

The ~~Falcons academy~~ Unoffical Scottish Rugby Academy (which we somehow manage not to pay for) is flying mightily again

And god bless you for that.

by Geordie Fri 30 May 2014, 6:48 pm

absolutely George!

Well to be fair many a southern fairy have called us a small town in Scotland anyway so we do our duties Very Happy

You were a bit slow with Scott Wilson mind warning

by Sgt_Pooly Tue 03 Jun 2014, 12:02 pm

Good news.....they're laying a 3G pitch

by Geordie Tue 03 Jun 2014, 1:09 pm

I thought it was 4G Sarge?

But nice to hear its going ahead what ever its called. Very Happy

by Sgt_Pooly Tue 03 Jun 2014, 8:01 pm

4G hasn't been authorised by RFU yet.

It'll either help us play some attacking rugby or make it better for the opposition, either way it's going to be entertaining!

by Geordie Wed 11 Jun 2014, 1:11 pm

The academy moves from strength to strength...

http://www.newcastlefalcons.co.uk/news/story/falcons-senior-academy-squad-announced-for-201415-season

I found this paragraph interesting.

There has been quite a bit of change over the past 12 months and now that the Senior Academy is training with the first team squad on a daily basis, which Dean brought in at the start of last season, we are really starting to see the benefits to their development."

This is only going to aid the development of the younger players.

Interesting the players we have loaned out aswell.

Andy Davies, Chris Harris, Ben Morris, Sean Robinson all to Rotherham
James Hallam has moved to London Scottish...interesting with Fry coming the other way?

by Fluxy Fri 13 Jun 2014, 11:36 am

Might be old news, but I see Joel Hodgson has been confirmed moving to Saints for next season.

by Sgt_Pooly Fri 13 Jun 2014, 11:42 am

It's been floated about but that's the first of it being confirmed Flux.

Sad news as he's a real talent and could have nailed the 10 shirt this season imo. On the flip side that leaves us with 2 recognised 10's and Socino who can cover. I really hope that means that another 10 is due in, hopefully Allen.

by Majestic83 Fri 13 Jun 2014, 12:08 pm

yeah just seen the news about Hodgson moving to Saints. It mentions in the article on planet rugby that Jim Mallinder says he will be competing with Lee Dickson and the Samoan guy for the scrum half jersey?

by Sgt_Pooly Fri 13 Jun 2014, 12:27 pm

He used to play scrum half at the younger grades

by Geordie Fri 13 Jun 2014, 12:37 pm

Has it been confirmed?

Edit: Ah yes its confirmed....well get your money out Deano!!!!

If we're settling for Godawful, Clegg and Socino (who is blatantly a 12 not a 10) then we're in trouble next season!!!! furious

by Geordie Mon 16 Jun 2014, 12:55 pm

Ignore this email.

by Driver Mon 16 Jun 2014, 1:05 pm

Colin Mcrae has left as skills coach

by Sgt_Pooly Tue 17 Jun 2014, 11:11 am

Shiells confirmed to Bath

by Geordie Tue 17 Jun 2014, 11:16 am

AH i think this is a shame aswell Sarge.

Fry is not a good replacement at the moment...unless Dean works his magic on him.

That leaves us with 2 LH props.

Vickers
Fry

Shiells away
Hallam is away on loan at London Scottish.

So unless we have some amazing young prop in the academy that can slot straight in to the 1st team squad, which seems highly unlikely...then we should expect more signings.

by Sgt_Pooly Tue 17 Jun 2014, 11:18 am

There'll have to be another coming in I think GF

by Geordie Tue 17 Jun 2014, 11:23 am

Theres some curious recruitment policies going on at the minute Sarge...can you understand it?

PS i assume Nagel was released and we're not signing him...

by Sgt_Pooly Tue 17 Jun 2014, 11:26 am

We're maybe just wrapping a few up, some signing take longer I guess.

I know super rugby signing usually happen later in the summer.

by Geordie Tue 17 Jun 2014, 11:28 am

Yeah hopefully mate.

We just seem to be loading up in certain positions and are a bit thin in others.

We need a few positions sorting yet.

by Geordie Wed 18 Jun 2014, 1:59 pm

I see Taulava signing hasnt gone through as he failed a medical.

So it would appear his injuries from last season may be worse than first thought.

Well maybe this will give York the green light to claim that bloomin 8 shirt for his own this season.

by Sgt_Pooly Wed 18 Jun 2014, 2:48 pm

That's disappointing as he was EQ and a hefty carrier. Leaves us a little light at 8

by Geordie Tue 24 Jun 2014, 9:44 am

So Fraser McKensie is off to Edinburgh. I dont think this is a huge surprise given the number of locks we have brought in...and im not convinced he was top class.

I really see the following being a possiblilty next season:

4 Green
5 Barrow
6 Furno

And thats a big impressive engine room.

In fact i think our pack will be a very physical proposition next season.

by Sgt_Pooly Tue 24 Jun 2014, 9:48 am

That's a shame GF, I thought he was quality. We did need to trim the locks a little though.

See Welch has retained the captaincy, quite surprising as I'm unsure if he's guaranteed to start.

by Geordie Tue 24 Jun 2014, 9:59 am

Yeah i thought he should have taken it off Welch. His form hasnt always warranted a starting place and surely your captain should be a definate starter.

Thing about Welch is that he will have some serious challengers for that spot this season.

Welch
Saull
Temm - the young Kiwi 7 who has been getting seriously good reviews.
The young lad at Blaydon who has by all accounts been exceptional all season

Further down the line un likely to challenge is the likes of Ben Morris on loan at Rotherham.

by Driver Tue 24 Jun 2014, 9:53 pm

Guttered to have lost McKenzie , sured the scrum up when he played and got through loads of work.

Vickers , Hawkins , Brookes , Furno , Barrow , Wilson , Welch , Hogg

Not a premiership inspiring pack.

The kid from Blaydon is meant to be quality GF , he's name escapes me but he's meant to be a handfull. Is it Harry Bate? Something like that , scored a wonder try vs Durham uni.

by Sgt_Pooly Tue 24 Jun 2014, 11:48 pm

We only need to be better than Welsh....although I'd hope for a bit more this season tbh. It's going to be a tough league again. Irish, Sale and Wasps have recruited well.

by Geordie Wed 25 Jun 2014, 8:40 am

Thats the one Harry Bate. Could be some competition for that 7 shirt, as Temm has put in some eye catchers as well, and NZ 7's are usually pretty good.

I think Green is there to replace McKenzie. I was speaking to a lot of leeds fans and they say he is your old fashioned hard man in the pack. He'll add some serious grunt and will compliment Barrow very well. They're gutted to be losing him.

I think our pack is actually looking pretty good and will have a nice physical edge to it.

1 Vickers
2 Hawkins / McGuigan / Lawson
3 Brookes / Wilson
Good physical front row thats mobile aswell. No issues here.

4 Green
5 Barrow
Green is the tough man and Barrow well is just class. A nicely balanced Second row.

6 Furno
7 Welch / Saul / Temm / Bate
8 Wilson / York
Nice mobile but agressive back row. Furno adding in to the lineout also.

The new Tongan can be brought in to add some extra balast if required. We also have options all over.

by Jimpy Mon 07 Jul 2014, 8:46 am

Unluck-ee Geordie, Falcons first season fixture is an away trip to Tigers for a thrashing...

Very Happy

by Sgt_Pooly Mon 07 Jul 2014, 8:56 am

Best time to play the Tigers, usually slow starters and poor during the 6N.

by Jimpy Mon 07 Jul 2014, 9:14 am

Sgt_Pooly wrote:Best time to play the Tigers, usually slow starters and poor during the 6N.

As I said in another article, Tigers have been dogged by pre season (and long term) injuries to several players for a few seasons now, hence their slow starts... however, Cockerill has recruited well and key players will be fit, providing they aren't crocked in pre-season training of course. But they should begin the new season with a near full contingent of first choice players....

by Sgt_Pooly Mon 07 Jul 2014, 10:30 am

They should, but they often are not. I doubt we'll get within 7 but we stand more a chance in the 1st game of the season than 10 games in.

by SirBurger Mon 07 Jul 2014, 1:00 pm

Just been reading the latest interview with John Wells. It seems to indicate that you boys are going to play a more expansive game on the new pitch. How do you feel about that? I always feared travelling away to KP - tough place to play against a side with a fairly restricted game plan (no offence). I'm personally not sure that an expansive game plan suits the players that you have...

by Sgt_Pooly Mon 07 Jul 2014, 1:11 pm

I'm not sure it'll be hugely expansive Burger, I think we'll just look to use the backs a little more than last season (we basically didn't use them at all)

I'd expect us to mix it up and bring in the big runners to get us over the gain line and on the front foot. We struggled to get any momentum last season until the final few games. We just didn't have anybody to break the line bar Sinoti.

Now we have the Tuilagi brothers, Socino and a few heavy hitters in the pack.

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