Tigers v Newcastle Falcons (H) - Premiership - Sunday 3rd December 2023 - KO: 3-00pm

[MCC1964]

Ugh. Freddie on the wing. I know there’s probably a good reason for that, but…

Then again, I’m happy in that I feel we ought to get the full five points.

[fentiger]

Ugh. Freddie on the wing. I know there’s probably a good reason for that, but…

Then again, I’m happy in that I feel we ought to get the full five points.

I think Freddie on the wing plus Brown at FB gives us better protection regarding Radwan etc.

[Rugbygramps]

Ugh. Freddie on the wing. I know there’s probably a good reason for that, but…

Then again, I’m happy in that I feel we ought to get the full five points.

Got to assume Bassett picked up a knock and Watson not ready.
I’m not a fan but love Kata impact off the bench and Freddie is a good finisher when given space

[Tigerbeat]

Newcastle Falcons have named their team for Sunday’s televised Gallagher Premiership trip to Leicester Tigers.

Matias Moroni makes his first trip back to Mattioli Woods Welford Road since forming part of the Leicester side which won the 2022 Premiership final.

The Argentina centre scored against his former club back in January when the Falcons enjoyed a 45-26 home victory, also crossing the try-line last weekend with a first-half score against Exeter Chiefs.

He lines up in a Newcastle team showing five personnel changes from that game – Louis Brown coming onto the left wing after scoring on his Premiership debut at Sale Sharks a fortnight ago. Elliott Obatoyinbo starts at full-back, meanwhile, as Tom Penny moves up into the centres in place of Cameron Hutchison (concussion).

In the forward pack Sam Cross starts at open-side with Guy Pepper missing out due to the hip injury sustained against Exeter. Adam Brocklebank packs down at loose-head prop, and former Tiger Sebastian de Chaves starts at lock.

Louie Johnson continues at fly-half, with the 20-year-old Cumbrian striking a touchline winner with the final kick of the game on his last visit to Welford Road when the Falcons snatched a Premiership Rugby Cup triumph in October of last year.

Tim Cardall is added to the bench with a calf injury having ruled out Philip van der Walt, and there is a recall for outside back Oliver Spencer after impressing on his Premiership debut at Sale Sharks.

Newcastle Falcons head coach Alex Codling is determined to nail down his side’s first league win of the season following a number of close shaves, saying: “Nobody here is accepting defeat – don’t be under any illusions about that.

“We’re working night and day to find those extra pieces of the puzzle which will get us over the line in these close games, and we’re not far off. I know people will be sick of hearing me say it – I’m sick of it myself – but it’s a big challenge which we’re tackling head-on.

“The boys have shown bucket loads of resilience this season and we’ve been competitive in all but one of our games. That one was against Saracens who went on to thump Harlequins away from home the following week, so you have to keep it in perspective.

“Some people on the outside say it’s a free shot this season, which I fundamentally disagree with. When you work 14 hours a day, seven days a week and you see a group of men fight and scrap like we did against Exeter, only to lose narrowly at the end – it hurts.

“We don’t have the depth and the level of experience that other teams have got, and the challenge is great, but all I care about is this group of players. They’re a brilliant group to work with, and yes, they will make some mistakes, but one thing I can never question is their fight and their spirit. When we do make errors we look to learn from them and be really positive in our language with the players, and that’s really important.”

Highlighting the importance of his young, local talent, Codling added: “My big focus is on developing the next generation of players for Newcastle Falcons.

“Maybe that means I’m rolling the dice potentially in the short term, but it’s the future of the club we’re talking about. I’m going to keep giving these guys opportunities, and in any walk of life you need to have that medium to long-term outlook if you want to be successful.

“In the short term it means we’re giving opportunities to lots of really talented young players who are going to make some mistakes, but down the line it will be really positive for us. The guys will take a huge amount of confidence and learning from being involved in these games, and I’ve got enormous faith in them.

“My job is to pick and choose which games they come in for because you have to protect them and develop them carefully, but it’s really exciting as a coach to give these guys opportunities and see them thriving.

“Seeing a guy like Louie Johnson coming in at 20 years of age and starting at fly-half in a live televised Premiership game last weekend – I thought he did really well – and we’ve seen similar with the likes of Oli Spencer, Guy Pepper, Ben Redshaw and others I could name.”

Well aware of the size of Sunday’s challenge, Codling said: “We’re massive underdogs at Leicester. Absolutely massive. Nobody outside of these four walls expects us to get anything, and what that allows us to do is really attack the game with a positive mind-set.

“We’ll be up against 15 internationals on their home patch in front of more than 20,000 supporters live on television. If you can’t be motivated by that as a player, then frankly you shouldn’t put your boots on.

“There’ll be World Cup winners up against us and we know what’s coming. They’ll be huge favourites and we know the size of the challenge, but we’re excited by it and determined to go down there with a really positive mind-set.”

Newcastle Falcons v Leicester Tigers (Sunday, 3pm, Mattioli Woods Welford Road, live on TNT Sports)

15 Elliott Obatoyinbo, 14 Adam Radwan, 13 Tom Penny, 12 Matias Moroni, 11 Louis Brown, 10 Louie Johnson, 9 James Elliott; 1 Adam Brocklebank, 2 Jamie Blamire, 3 Eduardo Bello, 4 John Hawkins, 5 Sebastian de Chaves, 6 Pedro Rubiolo, 7 Sam Cross, 8 Callum Chick (captain).

Replacements: 16 Bryan Byrne, 17 Phil Brantingham, 18 Murray McCallum, 19 Tim Cardall, 20 Freddie Lockwood, 21 Sam Stuart, 22 Brett Connon, 23 Oliver Spencer.

Not available for selection: Mateo Carreras, Sam Clark, Ben Douglas, Cameron Hutchison, Isaac Keller, Richard Palframan, Guy Pepper, Marcus Tiffen, Philip van der Walt, George Wacokecoke.

Leicester Tigers: 15 Mike Brown, 14 Freddie Steward, 13 Matt Scott, 12 Dan Kelly, 11 Ollie Hassell-Collins, 10 Handré Pollard, 9 Ben Youngs; 1 Francois Van Wyk, 2 Julián Montoya (captain), 3 Dan Cole, 4 Harry Wells, 5 Ollie Chessum, 6 Hanro Liebenberg, 7 Tommy Reffell, 8 Jasper Wiese.

Replacements: 16 Charlie Clare, 17 James Whitcombe, 18 Will Hurd, 19 Sam Carter, 20 Matt Rogerson, 21 Tom Whiteley, 22 Jamie Shillcock, 23 Solomone Kata.

Referee: Sara Cox.

[Darc Tiger]

Don't really have a problem with Freddie on the wing. Especially in the modern game where positioning is more flexible. I also think Freddie is an underrated finisher.

Sensible rotations made. Continuity where appropriate. Looking forward to another step forward.

[Tigerbeat]

Bookies have Tigers at 1/25 to win
Newcastle 14/1 to win

Handicap betting, Tigers to win by 19 points

[KiwiTig]

Happy with that
Players rested and rotated in key positions
…and of course delighted to see Mike Brown back in action

[CrumblingTerrace]

I like DMK's team selection.

We probably can't keep that back row unchanged for much longer, though. It's attritional stuff in there. Would love to see Ilione get a chance.

[Tiglon]

These days 95% of a wingers job is to catch, kick and chase - same as full backs. You can put 11, 14 or 15 on Steward's back and he'll be doing very similar things.

Very strong team, it really should be a 5 point win.

Interesting that McKellar isn't rotating much, but I suppose with a shorter season there's less need to. I'm curious what sort of teams he puts out in Europe.

[GB72]

These days 95% of a wingers job is to catch, kick and chase - same as full backs. You can put 11, 14 or 15 on Steward's back and he'll be doing very similar things.

Very strong team, it really should be a 5 point win.

Interesting that McKellar isn't rotating much, but I suppose with a shorter season there's less need to. I'm curious what sort of teams he puts out in Europe.

I guess for Europe you go strong at home and maybe rest away matches and see where that leaves us after a few games. The advantage of such a tough group is not nobody is going to win all of their matches and nobody is getting an easy ride and so a few teams may take that approach. Our only problem is that we are likely to be the away match that others target as one they can possibly get a result at.

[Ian Cant]

Great looking team. I hope this isn’t Mike Brown’s last game!
Great to see Moroni back at Welford Road but not, sadly, in aTigers’ shirt.
Looking forward to cheering the team on once we’ve negotiated the rolling road closures!

[Rugbygramps]

These days 95% of a wingers job is to catch, kick and chase - same as full backs. You can put 11, 14 or 15 on Steward's back and he'll be doing very similar things.

Very strong team, it really should be a 5 point win.

Interesting that McKellar isn't rotating much, but I suppose with a shorter season there's less need to. I'm curious what sort of teams he puts out in Europe.

Between Sunday and January 26th there are 9 games. From there until March 23rd there is the PRC semi and possible final, so a large part of the squad are going to be going 2 months with no matches so as you say less rotation needed in that case.
IMO for Europe it will full strength for the Stormers and rotation for Stade

[Rugbygramps]

These days 95% of a wingers job is to catch, kick and chase - same as full backs. You can put 11, 14 or 15 on Steward's back and he'll be doing very similar things.

Very strong team, it really should be a 5 point win.

Interesting that McKellar isn't rotating much, but I suppose with a shorter season there's less need to. I'm curious what sort of teams he puts out in Europe.

I guess for Europe you go strong at home and maybe rest away matches and see where that leaves us after a few games. The advantage of such a tough group is not nobody is going to win all of their matches and nobody is getting an easy ride and so a few teams may take that approach. Our only problem is that we are likely to be the away match that others target as one they can possibly get a result at.

From memory Stormers sent very much a change team to Exeter last season, and they are at home to Zebre tomorrow so may do similar

[chris111]

Bookies have Tigers at 1/25 to win
Newcastle 14/1 to win

Handicap betting, Tigers to win by 19 points

I know the etiquette these days is to say “all games are tough and take nothing for granted, etc.” - but in reality Tigers should probably be disappointed if they only win by 19. A side with aspirations to get to top 4 should be aiming to win this by 30 or 40.

[Old Hob]

I think, Chris, that's too optimistic. Falcons are not a bad side and we still don't click completely. If we do click, then yes, I agree.