Home
TEAM NEWS: HODGE STARTS AT LEICESTER
Josh Hodge starts for Newcastle Red Bulls on Saturday when they make the Gallagher PREM trip to Leicester Tigers.
The England A full-back is beginning his second spell with the club after returning from Exeter Chiefs, and forms part of a side showing six changes for the 3pm kick-off at Mattioli Woods Welford Road.
Ben Healy makes his first start since arriving from Edinburgh, coming in at fly-half in a refreshed half-back pairing alongside James Elliott.
Tom Christie captains the side in the absence of the injured skipper George McGuigan, for whom Ollie Fletcher comes in at hooker, with fellow academy graduate Micky Rewcastle making his first PREM start at loose-head prop.
The only other change to the starting XV sees Adam Scott returning to the second row, with head coach Stephen Jones relishing the prospect of tackling the Tigers in their own lair.
“It’s a wonderful game to be part of,” said the Wales and Lions great.
“It’s a great place to play rugby at a really traditional venue, and I’m sure it will be a brilliant atmosphere. You’re involved in rugby to experience these big occasions, and our boys have got to get excited about that.
“We respect Leicester for what they’ve achieved and how they’re playing, but from our perspective it’s about going there, playing our own game and showing the qualities we’ve got.
“They’re a very physical side, it’s clear what their DNA is and Geoff Parling has done a wonderful job with them.
“What we can control is our own game plan - how we play with the ball, how we manage the territory and how smart we can be around the field. It’s about getting entries into their half, then moving the ball and asking questions.”
Reflecting on their EPCR Challenge Cup exit last time out against La Rochelle, Jones said: “We worked incredibly hard to get ourselves into the lead, we showed some great problem-solving at times, and at 18-15 the game was on a knife edge.
“La Rochelle managed to win the territorial battle in the last 15 minutes and kept us camped deep in our half, kicking two goals and forcing us to play from deep during those final moments. Up until that point I felt it could have gone either way and, as much as we were disappointed by the outcome, I thought we put in a lot of good work.”
Having had a fortnight’s build-up to this weekend’s encounter going into the last half-dozen games of the season, the Red Bulls boss added: “We’ve had two weeks between matches, which is important from a physical and mental preparation point of view.
“The guys have had a few days’ rest before being worked hard in training, we’re starting to get a few bodies back and there’s strong competition for places. Having Josh Hodge and Ben Healy coming to us for the run-in is another boost because they’re both quality players, and we’ve already started to see the attributes that they can bring.
“We’ve got six games left to go this season, and they’re all really important to us. Obviously we want to achieve results and climb up the table, but the most important thing is how we grow our game, how we challenge individuals and improve our habits on a daily basis to become better.
“We need clarity on our game plan and on what is expected of us, and if we do all of those things then we put ourselves in the best possible position to improve our performance and start achieving more wins in the competition.
“I’m very upbeat. You’ve got to be, because this is the best job you could wish for, and the buy-in I’m getting from the players and staff here has been excellent.
“Yes, professional rugby is all about results, but I’m absolutely confident that we’re doing the right things which will ultimately help to get us there in the long run.”
Newcastle Red Bulls v Leicester Tigers (Saturday, 3pm, Mattioli Woods Welford Road, live on HBO Max)
15 Josh Hodge, 14 Christian Wade, 13 Alex Hearle, 12 Rhys Beeckmans, 11 Elliott Obatoyinbo, 10 Ben Healy, 9 James Elliott; 1 Micky Rewcastle, 2 Ollie Fletcher, 3 Richard Palframan, 4 Jamie Hodgson, 5 Adam Scott, 6 Tom Gordon, 7 Tom Christie (captain), 8 Ollie Leatherbarrow.
Replacements: 16 Samson Adejimi, 17 Adam Brocklebank, 18 Murray McCallum, 19 Freddie Clarke, 20 Reuben Parsons, 21 Simón Benítez Cruz, 22 Brett Connon, 23 Fergus Lee-Warner.
Not available for selection: Sammy Arnold, Eduardo Bello, Max Clark, Luan de Bruin, Connor Doherty, Ethan Grayson, Joel Grayson, Callum Hancock, Connor Hancock, Elvis Kitenge-Fuki, Freddie Lockwood, Amanaki Mafi, George McGuigan, Cameron Neild, Oli Spencer, Oscar Usher.
Leicester Tigers: 15 Freddie Stewart, 14 Adam Radwan, 13 Will Wand, 12 Rhys Beeckmans, 11 Elliott Obatoyinbo, 10 Billy Searle, 9 Jack van Poortvliet; 1 Nicky Smith, 2 Jamie Blamire, 3 Joe Heyes, 4 Cameron Henderson, 5 Ollie Chessum (captain), 6 Hanro Liebenberg, 7 Hamish Watson, 8 Joaquin Moro.
Replacements: 16 Charlie Clare, 17 Tarek Haffar, 18 Will Hurd, 19 George Martin, 20 Olly Cracknell, 21 Tom Whiteley, 22 Izaia Perese, 23 Ollie Hassell-Collins.
Referee: Joe James.
READ MORE
