Fletcher to captain Newcastle against Leicester
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Fletcher to captain Newcastle against Leicester
Ollie Fletcher captains Newcastle Red Bulls against Leicester Tigers on Friday as they aim to maintain their unbeaten start to the PREM Rugby Cup.
The Kingston Park clash is a 7.45pm kick-off and IS included on the season ticket, with Newcastle aiming to build on their 26-14 home win over Harlequins in the opening round of the competition.
Harrison Obatoyinbo makes his debut on the wing, with Sammy Arnold and Sam Stuart returning from injury to line up at inside centre and scrum-half respectively.
Nathan Greenwood makes his first start of the season on the right wing, with Fletcher at the heart of a front-row which sees Murray McCallum and Luan de Bruin also promoted to the starting XV.
Seb de Chaves returns to the second row, with Ollie Leatherbarrow earning a start after scoring from the bench last weekend at Harlequins. Freddie Lockwood and Cameron Neild join him in the back row, while there could be a Red Bulls debut for hooker Hame Faiva and full-back Sam Waugh, who are both among the replacements.
Hoping to use the PREM Rugby Cup as a catalyst for his side’s league season, head coach Alan Dickens said: “We’ve talked about getting cohesion and momentum, and I see every single game as a chance to improve as a team.
“Different clubs use the PREM Cup in different ways, but if you look at the last decade or so the teams who have won the cup have been in a real building phase. We did it while I was at Northampton in terms of winning it and kicking on to win the league, and sides like Leicester, Exeter and Bath have done similar over the years.
“So it can be a bit of stepping stone before going on to greater things, and in the really early part of our journey as Newcastle Red Bulls it’s an important staging post for us.”
Determined to improve on last weekend’s league loss at Harlequins, Dickens said: “There was a lot of frustration and disappointment after the game, and everyone has been very honest and professional in terms of how we move on from here.
“We’ve got this block of predominantly cup games where we can have a bit of a re-set, freshen things up and use it as a springboard for the remainder of the season.
“A number of guys have played a lot of rugby so they need to be managed sensibly, and equally it gives an opportunity for other lads to come in, stake their claim and give us some difficult decisions to make around selection.
“Guys are chomping at the bit to get some game time, it’s a big opportunity and we’re looking to use this block in a really positive way.
“Any game against Leicester Tigers will revolve around physicality, regardless of which side they pick. You can have all the best-laid plans around tactics, attack shape and all the rest of it, but you need that physical edge for any of it to count.”
Newcastle Red Bulls team v Leicester Tigers (Friday, 7.45pm, Kingston Park, not on TV)
15 Stefan Coetzee, 14 Oli Spencer, 13 Sammy Arnold, 12 Nathan Greenwood, 11 Harrison Obatoyinbo, 10 Brett Connon, 9 Sam Stuart; 1 Murray McCallum, 2 Ollie Fletcher (captain), 3 Luan de Bruin, 4 Oscar Usher, 5 Seb de Chaves, 6 Cameron Neild, 7 Ollie Leatherbarrow, 8 Freddie Lockwood.
Replacements: 16 Hame Faiva, 17 Micky Rewcastle, 18 Callum Hancock, 19 Adam Scott, 20 Reuben Parsons, 21 Simón Benítez Cruz, 22 Sam Waugh, 23 Ethan Grayson.
Not available for selection: Rhys Beeckmans, Eduardo Bello, Boeta Chamberlain, Tom Christie, Freddie Clarke, Joe Davis, Jack Dickens, Connor Doherty, Joel Grayson, Elvis Kitenge-Fuki, Elliott Obatoyinbo, Christian Wade, Liam Williams.
Leicester Tigers: 15 Charlie Titcombe, 14 Gabriel Hamer-Webb, 13 Will Wand, 12 Joseph Woodward (captain), 11 George Pearson, 10 Orlando Bailey, 9 Ollie Allan; 1 Tarek Haffar, 2 Finn Theobald-Thomas, 3 Tonga Kofe, 4 Harry Wells, 5 Tom Manz, 6 Josh Manz, 7 Sam Williams, 8 Joaquín Moro.
Replacements: 16 John Stewart, 17 Tubuna Maka, 18 Ale Loman, 19 James Thompson, 20 Harry Palmer, 21 Charlie Bemand, 22 Ryan Crowley, 23 Tom Threlfall.
Referee: Joe James.
