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'We can't hide behind anything - we've been relegated, and that's the reality'
Gary Graham says Newcastle will trying to earn back the respect of their supporters when they host Bristol in Saturday’s season-ending Gallagher Premiership encounter.
The Kingston Park fixture sees the Falcons draw a line under a campaign where they were relegated from the top flight.
“We can’t hide behind anything – we’ve been relegated, and that’s the reality of it,” said Scottish international Graham. “But we’ve got one more game to show our supporters, our coaches and probably ourselves how much it means to be part of this team.”
Insisting it won’t be a care-free end-of-season mind-set, the back rower added: “It’s not a ‘nothing’ game for us, even though our league position has already been decided.
“We have not done ourselves justice this season. We have lost too many games and we’re treating Saturday just as seriously as we would do any other match.
https://twitter.com/FalconsRugby/status/1128919275824189440
“We’re not just going out there to chuck it around. We will be trying to impose our own game on Bristol and we’ve got work to do in showing our fans how much we care.”
Asked what the difference was from the previous season, in which the Falcons reached the semi-finals and achieved a 20-year high in terms of league position, Graham said: “We’ve done a lot of soul searching and tried to put our finger on what has gone wrong this season. A big part of it is having that winning mentality.
“Last season we won most of our first six or so games and we were top of the league or thereabouts, and this season we won one of our first six.
“It just meant we were around that bottom spot from pretty much the first couple of rounds, and we’ve not been able to get away from there.
“It is what it is and there’s no point in us making excuses – we’ve just got to go out now against Bristol and show people what it means to us to play for this club, and to try and right a few of the wrongs we’ve shown over the year.
“After that we’ve got to go down to the Championship and bounce straight back up, but that’s going to be a challenge in itself. The Championship is a very good league with some very good players and teams in it, and we’ll have to work hard to get back up.”
WATCH: John Barclay chats with RugbyPass about the 2019 World Cup, social media, retirement and a potential move abroad after the finals in Japan
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Comments on RugbyPass
Bar the injuries, it’s pretty much their top team …
2 Go to commentsDon’t disagree with much of this but it appears you forgot Rodda and Beale, who started at the Force on the weekend.
9 Go to commentsExcept for the injured Zach Gallagher this would be Saders best forward pack for the season. Blackadder needs to stay at 7, for all of Christies tackling he is not dominant and offers very little else. McNicholfullback is maybe a good option, Fihaki not really upto it, there was a reason Burke played there last year. Maybe Havilli to 2nd five McLeod to wing. Need a strong winger on 1 side to compliment Reece
1 Go to commentsTo me TJ is clearly the best 9 in the competition right now but he's also a proven player off the bench, there's few playmaking players who can come off the bench as calm and settled as he is, Beauden can, TJ can and I doubt any of the scrumhalves in contention can, if they want to experiment with new 9s I want him on the bench ready to step in if they crumble under the pressure. The Boks put their best front row on the bench, I'd like to see us take a similar approach, the Hurricanes have been doing similar things with players like Kirifi.
35 Go to commentsROG has better chance to win a WC if he starts training and make himself eligible as a player. He won’t make the Ireland squad but I reckon he may get close with Namibia (needs to improve his Afrikaans) or Portugal. Both sides had 1000:1 odds to win the RWC in 2023 which is an improvement on ROG’s odds of winning a RWC as a coach. Unlike Top 14 teams, national teams can’t go shopping and buy the best players - you work with the available talent pool and turn them into world beaters.
2 Go to commentsthat backline nope that backline is terrible why would you have sevu Reece when he’s not even top 5 wingers in the comp why have Blackadder when there’s better players no Scott barret isn’t an automatic the guy is more of a liability than anything why have him there when you have samipeni who’s far far better
35 Go to commentsAh, good to find you Nick. Agree with everything about Cale. So much to like about his game
49 Go to commentsNot too bad. Questions at 6, lock and HB for me. The ABs will be a lot stronger once Jordan and Roigard return. Also, work needs to be made to secure Frizzell back for next season and maybe also Mo’unga; they’re just wasting time playing in japan
35 Go to commentsOn the title, i wonder for many of those people it is a case something like a belief in working smarter, not harder?
1 Go to commentsForget Sotutu. One of those whose top level is Super Rugby. Id take a punt on Wallace Sititi Finau ahead of Glass body Blackadder.
35 Go to commentsI’m a pensioner so I've been around a bit. My opinion of SBW is he is an elite athlete and a great New Zealander and roll model. He has been to the top and knows what he's talking about. To all the negative comments regarding SBW the typical New Zealand way, cut that tall poppy down.
17 Go to commentsI'm not listening to a guy moralise over others when this is the guy who walked out mid season on Canterbury RLFC when he had a contract with them, what a hypocrite. All the Kiwis sticking up for this unprincipled individual because they can't accept justified criticism, he has zero credibility or integrity. Those praising him are a joke.
17 Go to commentsI’d put Finau at 6 instead of Blackadder but that’s the only change I’d make. Can’t wait to see who Razor picks.
35 Go to commentsTamati Williams, Codie Taylor, and Same Cane? Not sure about Hoskins Sotutu at test level. Wasn’t that impressive last season. Need a balance between experience and talent/youth.
35 Go to commentsInteresting insight. Fantastic athlete, and a genuine human being.
17 Go to commentsThey played at night in Suva last weekend and it’s an afternoon game forecast for 19 degrees in Canberra this weekend. Heat change is a non issue.
2 Go to commentsWishing Rosie a speedy recovery
1 Go to commentsObscene that SA haven’t been knocking
1 Go to commentsChances of Blackadder being injured seem too high to give him serious consideration. ABs loosie combination finally looked good with 2 committed to tackling and clearing rucks in the centre and Ardie roaming. Hoskins/Ardie together would force one of them into where they don’t excel and don’t get to use their talent, or require a change in tactics. If we continue to evolve last years systems I would take Papali’i and Finau at 6 and 7 (conceding that Blackadder will be injured) and Ardie at 8.
35 Go to commentsArdie’s preferred position 7? Where do they get these writers from? I've no idea where he's playing in Japan, but the previous two seasons he wore the 7 jersey exactly twice.
18 Go to comments