Chiefs hold no fear as Green eyes monsters

CALUM Green says Newcastle Falcons are determined to make the most of their moment, having reached a first ever Aviva Premiership semi-final.

The Falcons travel to Exeter Chiefs on Saturday after their highest league finish in 20 years, with the lock having played in all but two of their 22 matches.

“If you’d said at the start of the season that we’d be in this position there’d be people who probably couldn’t believe it,” said Green, whose team finished fourth.

“We were aiming for top six so to get top four is a nice bonus, but now that we’re here we might as well go all the way.”

The Falcons are the surprise package of a remarkable Premiership season, with Green dominating the line-out stats.

The 27-year-old, who was named in the BT Sport Dream Team at last night’s Premiership Rugby Awards, said: “Once we were in the mix for the top four after Christmas we just thought ‘why not?’

“There was a big collective push to just keep winning every week and see where it would take us, but after losing away at Worcester we maybe thought that was the semifinals out of reach.

“We had a good home win over Sale, and then we knew we’d have to win at Leicester.

“That was the match that got us here, and if we can win a game like that then there’s no reason why we can’t win at Exeter on Saturday.”

Green and his Falcons squad have full respect for the reigning champions and regular-season top dogs, but it was Newcastle who won the last league meeting between the two clubs.

“We’re ready, we’ve prepared really well and the whole squad is full of confidence,” he said.

“We just want to give a performance which reflects the ability and desire within the group, and if we do that we’ll be happy.

“Exeter have built their club and their team very steadily from their promotion season, and it’s the model most clubs would look to.

“I don’t think there’s any disgrace in saying we’ve looked to emulate that, and why wouldn’t you when it’s all built on a good local fan base, a thriving academy, a real team ethic and a couple of foreigners who bring the stardust?

“If you look at our squad and our club we’re not too dissimilar. Maybe they’re a few years ahead of us but we’re not in a bad place.

“I’m massively excited, and weeks like this are why you play the game. You have to make the most of them, enjoy them and give it absolutely everything on the day.”