Falcons will ring the changes for Cup tie

TIAN Schoeman comes in at fly-half for Newcastle Falcons when they host Northampton Saints in Premiership Rugby Cup action this afternoon.

The South African forms part of a side showing 11 changes from the one that won 27-21 at Gloucester last weekend.

Sebastian de Chaves is paired in the second row with guest player Jamie Berrisford, a 26-year-old from Scottish club Watsonians, with full-back Alex Tait captaining the side.

Josh Barton comes in at scrum-half with Iwan Stephens on the wing.

Jamie Blamire and Mark Tampin start in the front row after coming on from the bench during last weekend’s win ove r Gloucester, teenager Guy Pepper continuing at openside flanker.

Vereimi Qorowale is in line to make his home debut after being named among the replacements, Welsh fly-half Josh Thomas also set to feature in a side being coached by head of academy James Ponton and academy head coach PJ Butler.

Ponton said: “The week has been exciting and full of challenges and we are looking forward to the game. The first-team boys who are not involved in the match have been really good in buying into our preparation and helping get the guys ready. “We are excited about getting some game time into a number of lads who have not played as much for us this season and it has been a positive week.” He added: “The fact it is a weekend game rather than a Tuesday or Wednesday night also makes a massive difference in terms of what we are able to do. “When you are midweek and sandwiched between two Premiership games you are really limited in what sessions you can put on and the games don’t get as much attention o r resource pu t towards them. “It is different on a

Falcons’ Tian Schoeman weekend because you are the main event, there is more of a build-up and we have the England game on afterwards which a lot of people will be keen to watch.

“It means our players are the centre of attention and that is really good for them.

“Off the back of our last cup win at Leicester a lot of these guys are excited to get back into it and there is a lot of belief among the group.”

Asked about the qualification picture, which has been complicated by the withdrawals of Wasps and Worcester from the pool phase, Ponton said: “We are just thinking about winning the game because the qualification criteria has been a bit up in the air to say the least.

“There have been cross-league games and then some teams playing more times than others due to the Wasps and Worcester scenario and clarity has not been easy to find in term of exactly what is happening.

“All I am saying to the players is let’s play well and win the game and then let the other stuff take care of itself.”

Assessing the threat posed by the Saints, Ponton added: “I have watched all of Northampton’s cup games and they play what I would say is a bit of an all-court game. “They are very ambitious, they move the ball a lot and they are not scared to try things in areas where if you lose the ball you are under a lot of pressure.

“If we get ourselves into a good position I think we could really get into them.

“With effective defensive reads we can force turnover ball when they try to play from deep and if you catch teams in that way they can often enter a downward spiral.”

The match, at 3.30pm, forms part of a rugby-filled day at Kingston Park that also includes a RGS Newcastle v Durham School game at noon and England v New Zealand at 5.30 on TV.

All I’m saying to the players is let’s play well and win the game, and then let the other stuff take care of itself James Ponton