Lift-off for Falcons as Warriors are crushed
NEWCASTLE Falcons got their season off to a flyer with a thumping bonus-point win over Worcester Warriors.
Alex Tait set the tone with an early try, while Rob Vickers, Kyle Cooper and Juan Pablo Socino touched down to render a Josh Adams score redundant for the visitors.
Scrum-half Sonatane Takulua celebrated his new four-year deal with 13 points from the boot.
After an eighth-placed finish last year, the Falcons will look to improve on that this season. They certainly look capable of that in what was a comfortable victory.
In a repeat of last season’s Kingston Park curtain call, which Newcastle won 16-14, this match was the perfect opportunity to measure each side’s post-season improvements.
But with Falcons centre Josh Matavesi the only new face in either first XV, it seemed a repeat of last season’s edgy encounters could have been on the cards.
The early stages seemed to suggest otherwise as the hosts pressed forward, stretching the visiting defence.
Tait’s first snappy break was ended just before the try line, but his second surge minutes later saw him coast in underneath the posts for an easy score.
In response, the Warriors built a solid stretch of sustained pressure, but handling errors thwarted a series of half-chances.
And they were punished when a quick counter-attack saw Newcastle extend the lead via a penalty.
Takulua slotted the kick over comfortably to give Newcastle a 10-0 lead after 22 minutes despite having little territory.
The Warriors were dealt another blow as British Lions star Ben Te’o, a pre-match replacement himself, was forced off four minutes later with a wrist injury. But they finally got their first points as Heathcote thumped through a 40-metre penalty before the half-hour mark.
And just seconds before the break, the Scot missed an opportunity to add a further three points in an injury-interrupted end to the first half.
It took 10 minutes for the game to heat up after the break but when it did, it exploded into life.
Warriors full-back Adams managed to squeeze the ball down just before being pushed into touch, via a TMO review.
But from the restart, the Falcons won a penalty almost immediately, which Takulua drilled over to make the scoreline 13-8.
And the Tongan teamed up with Simon Hammersley to break away again a minute later.
Prop Vickers marked his 200th league appearance by finishing the move underneath the posts, with Takulua converting.
The Falcons were rampant and hooker Cooper was next to add his name to the scoresheet, touching down in the corner after a huge maul.
Takulua added another penalty three minutes later, with the try bonus point now a distinct possibility. Substitute Socino added that five minutes from time, with Craig Willis booting over to complete the scoring.
Newcastle – top of the Premiership for the first time this century – face their first away test of the season at Sale Sharks next Friday.