Newcastle Falcons

Newcastle Falcons is a rugby union team that play in Premiership Rugby, England's highest division of rugby union.

The club was established in 1877 as the Gosforth Football Club. Around 1882 the club merged with the Northumberland Football Club and briefly assumed their name until 1887. In 1990, the name was changed to Newcastle Gosforth and the club began to play at Kingston Park stadium in Kingston Park, Newcastle upon Tyne. In 1996, following the start of professionalism the club briefly adopted the name Newcastle Rugby Club before adopting its current name.

Newcastle has won 5 major titles. They won the Premiership in 1998 and four domestic cups in 1976, 1977, 2001 and 2004.

Newcastle was the only English club of Jonny Wilkinson, where he played from 1997 to 2009, and as well as Wilkinson in 2003 Newcastle saw three players in the 2007 Rugby World Cup Final with Mathew Tait starting and Toby Flood appearing from the bench. Mark Wilson played in the 2019 Rugby World Cup Final while at the club.

Newcastle finished the 2021-22 Premiership Rugby season in 12th place, entitling them to play in the 2022-23 European Rugby Challenge Cup.

History

Name changes

* Gosforth Football Club (1877–1882)
* Northumberland Football Club (1882–1887); Merged with Northumberland FC and assumed their name.
* Gosforth Football Club (1887–1990); Reverted name back to Gosforth FC.
* Newcastle Gosforth (1990–1995)
* Newcastle Rugby Club (1996); Turned professional; Junior players let go and formed Gosforth Rugby Football Club.
* Newcastle Falcons (1997–present)

Early years (1877–1990s)

The original Gosforth Football Club was founded in 1877 by a group of Old Boys of Durham School, in whose colours of green and white hoops the club played until the mid-1990s. The name Gosforth came from one of the suburbs of Newcastle upon Tyne. In 1955, the club moved to a new ground at North Road which was to be its home until 1990. During that time and particularly in the late 1970s Gosforth enjoyed tremendous success both on and off the field winning the John Player Cup in seasons 1975–76 and 1976–77.

Gosforth supplied innumerable players to all counties over the years, to the North of England sides and to the full international and British Lions teams. These include Arthur Smith, Ray McLoughlin, Malcolm Young, Roger Uttley, Peter Dixon, Duncan Madsen, Dave Robinson, Richard Breakey, Jim Pollock and Colin White.

In 1990 the club name was changed to Newcastle Gosforth and they moved to Kingston Park. Gosforth Rugby Football Club continued as an amateur side working in partnership with Northumbria University and currently play at Broadway West.

Professional era

For the 1996–97 season the new name of Newcastle Falcons and new black-and-white colours were adopted, after local businessman Sir John Hall took control and attempted to create a sporting club in Newcastle that would emulate the success of the Barcelona model. The four teams that made up that sporting club were the football team, nicknamed the Magpies, the Newcastle Eagles basketball team, the Newcastle Cobras (later Riverkings, Jesters, Vipers) ice hockey team and the Newcastle Falcons rugby union team.

Newcastle was the first fully "professional" club in the world. In 1995, Sir John Hall installed former Wasps captain Rob Andrew as his salaried Director of Rugby and saw the club earn promotion from the national Second Division to the Premiership.

The following season, Newcastle became English Premiership champions at their first attempt in 1997–98. Alongside Andrew, the Championship winning side starred cross-code All Black, Samoa and Rugby League legend Inga Tuigamala, Scotland legends Doddie Weir and Gary Armstrong, England star Tony Underwood, British and Irish Lions stars Alan Tait and John Bentley and youngster Jonny Wilkinson.

During the following 1998–99 season Newcastle didn't play in Europe, as English teams did not take part, but the Falcons did go on to the Tetley's Bitter Cup final against Wasps, which was lost 29–19. In 1999, Rob Andrew retired allowing for 20-year-old international Jonny Wilkinson to assume the fly half role full-time. Andrew would remain as Director of Rugby.

Hall sold the Falcons for a 'nominal' sum in 1999 to local businessman Dave Thompson, under whom the Falcons won two Powergen Cups: in 2001 the Falcons beat Harlequins FC 30–27; and in 2004 the Falcons beat 37–33 against Sale Sharks.

In 2004, legendary Wallabies full-back Matt Burke signed for the Falcons. For the Falcons, Burke played alongside former English rival Jonny Wilkinson (his opposite kicker in the 2001 British and Irish Lions tour of Australia). In Wilkinson, Burke, England international Dave Walder and emerging future England number 10 Toby Flood the Falcons had adequate competition for kicking duties over the coming seasons, despite long-term injuries to Jonny Wilkinson. During the 2004–05 season the Falcons recorded their best ever Heineken Cup performance to date by winning their pool and progressing to a quarter-final tie against Stade Français in the Parc des Princes.

In August 2005 Falcons toured Japan pre-season. They beat NEC Green Rockets easily but lost to a fired-up Toyota Verblitz.Falcons fall to narrow defeat in Japan
Guinness Premiership, 23 August 2005.

In August 2006 Rob Andrew left the Falcons to take charge of the England set-up ahead of the 2007 World Cup in a wide-ranging role that encompasses all aspects of the professional representative game in England.Falcons pay tribute to Andrew
, Newcastle-Falcons.co.uk, 18 August 2006 John Fletcher succeeded Rob Andrew as director of rugby at Newcastle Falcons with immediate effect. Fletcher, a former England A centre, had been the club's academy boss and he headed up a team of Peter Walton, Steve Black and Bob Morton, with ex-Falcons prop Ian Peel taking over as acting academy manager.

2007–08 season

The season began with high hopes as All-Black prop Carl Hayman signed for the Falcons, reportedly as the highest paid Rugby Union player in the world. Unfortunately, the season was the beginning of a downward spiral for the Falcons. On 11 March 2008, Fletcher and Walton left the club, officially by mutual consent,Boss Fletcher Leaves Newcastle
BBC Sport, 11 March 2008 following Black who had left a couple of months earlier. Steve Bates took over as interim director of rugby until summer 2008 when the post was reviewed. Dave Thompson stated at that time that nine years of underachievement were the reason for the departure of John Fletcher and Peter Walton.

Having said this, Bates guided the Falcons to a record-equalling run of seven consecutive Premiership defeats by April 2008 with home games against Leicester Tigers and London Wasps plus a season-concluding away trip to Worcester Warriors yet to come. Defeat in the European Challenge Cup semi-final against Worcester Warriors on 25 April 2008 may well have sounded the death knell for Steve Bates' tenure as interim DoR. However, on Tuesday 20 May 2008 Steve Bates was confirmed as Newcastle's Director of Rugby on a full-time basis.Steve Bates given Newcastle Falcons job
''Telegraph'', 20 May 2008 At the end of the season, fly-half Toby Flood left for Leicester Tigers and full-back Mathew Tait signed for Sale Sharks, as the struggling Falcons failed to hold onto young English international talent. England Saxons scrum-half Lee Dickson would also depart for Northampton Saints, where he would go on to earn full international honours. Legendary Australia full back Matt Burke retired due to injury at the end of the campaign.

2008–09 season

In November 2008 Chairman Dave Thompson put an end to speculation of a takeover of the club after rejecting three bids. He held talks with a number of different consortia and reportedly turned down one offer of a full take over as the bidding consortium wanted to relocate the club to Darlington. Furthermore, he said the speculation had led to instability in the club which was unsettling players and fans alike. On the pitch the Falcons reached another European Challenge Cup quarter-final going down to Saracens away from home and finished 10th in the Premiership. This season marked the end of an era as legendary fly-half Jonny Wilkinson left the club for RC Toulonnais. England under-20s fly-half Rory Clegg also left for Harlequins as Jimmy Gopperth was signed as replacement fly-half. The loss of Wilkinson was compounded by the departure of future British and Irish Lions star Geoff Parling who continued the outflow of talent, leaving for Leicester Tigers. Another trio who would go on to achieve England honours in Phil Dowson, Dave Wilson and Tom May also left for Northampton Saints, Bath Rugby and RC Toulonnais respectively.

2009–10 season

The Falcons failed to replace the character and quality which had departed, with imports Gcobani Bobo and Filipo Levi flattering to deceive, Gopperth the sole bright spot. After a disappointing season the pressure mounted on Steve Bates and on 4 May 2010, the club announced that Bates' contract had been terminated and he was being replaced by first team coach Alan Tait.
The decision came after Newcastle went on an unbeaten run to quash any doubts of relegation largely due to an inspirational Carl Hayman. But a crushing home European Challenge Cup Quarter Final defeat by Cardiff Blues signalled the end of the Bates era. Following the loss of England talent Flood, Tait and Wilkinson in previous seasons, the last remaining England international at the club, Jamie Noon, departed for CA Brive. The front line was also notably weakened when club captain Hayman left the Falcons once his lucrative contract expired, to join former teammate Wilkinson at RC Toulonnais.

2010–11 season

Towards the end of the previous season Chairman Dave Thompson had to seek investment for the club due to increasing debts following the Nationalisation of Northern Rock, the club's main sponsor. After months of speculation, it was announced that local businessman Semore Kurdi had purchased a 40% stake in the club in September 2010, easing the club's financial difficulties. Scotland number 8 Allister Hogg was signed, while Scotland and Lions prop Euan Murray also arrived to plug the gap left by Hayman. On the pitch in Alan Tait's first season the Falcons reached the Anglo-Welsh Cup final, losing to Gloucester 34–7. Despite this relative success the Falcons finished their worst ever Premiership season with just 23 points (four wins), only escaping relegation thanks to the inferior points difference of Leeds Carnegie. England Saxons pair, scrum-half Micky Young and prop Kieran Brookes, would both depart for Leicester Tigers at the end of the campaign.

2011–12 season: Relegation to Championship

The huge outflow of talent from 2008 onwards, and lack of suitable reinforcements, would come to bear during this campaign. Samoa international centre Jamie Helleur