By Jason Harris
January 17 2003

Let's forget the headlines of last weekend and concentrate upon the job in hand. Never mind if someone forgot to feed the meter ten bob or that Jonny Wilkinson is back in Newcastle colours, it's time to go a hunting Falcons. And ducks too! Far from condoing the handing out by Ian Sloane (Sarries kit man) of 12-bore over-and-under shotguns, I think it's about time Sarries killed two birds with the one stone.

By downing the Falcons at Kinsgton Park, they will break their duck at the leagues most remote outpost.

Sarries captain Kyran Bracken was the master of understatement this week when he told the club's official web site "Saracens in the past haven't done too well at Kingston Park".

For "haven't done too well" read no wins at all since the Newcastle side returned to the top flight five years ago. Nil. Zip. Nowt. Diddly squat. It's high time that record was smashed to bits and what better time than against a team at the bottom of the table and 21 points adrift before the match starts?

Newcastle have been rudderless in the wake of Jonny Wilkinson's injury sustained against the South Africans before Christmas. Though the player who's said to be first on the England team sheet every game (wot? BEFORE Richard Hill?) returned last weekend, he could only look on as Saracens finally woke up during the second half to shut out the hapless Falcons 25-0 after the break.

Saracens were, of course, overjoyed with their second period performance at Vicarage Road, but the players and coach Shelford all know that Newcastle are not going to lie down and take another beating, even though the tie looks beyond them.

The Men in Black will do well to remember that the Falcons overturned a 19 point defecit against Treviso in the last round and complacenty will see the same thing happening.

Newcastle boss Rob Andrew has named a 22-man squad unchanged from the one that lost in the re-arranged first leg on Monday night citing ineligibility and injuries as the reason for doing so. Falcons will be without Walder, Andrews, Mayerhofler, Christian, Newby, Mower, Arnold and Brotherstone to call upon for the second leg and Andrew is not very happy about that particular situation.

Wayne Shelford, meanwhile, has made a handful of changes from the side that woke up during the second half of the first leg.

Into the starting lineup come Thomas Castaignede, Ben Johnston, Matt Cairns, Craig Yandell and Tony Roques at the respective expense of Adryan Winnan, Kevin Sorrell, Joe Ross, Abdel Benazzi and Ben Russell.

Of the five players displaced, only Russell and Sorrell remain in the squad. Winnan is rested, Benazzi takes a rest after picking up a knock on Monday night and Ross is dropped due to the long-awaited return of Robbie Russell, sidelined for eight months with a back injury.

With the final round of Heineken Cup matches also taking place this weekend, the Parker Pen Challenge Cup has taken a back seat as far as the media is concerned. This match even more so given the difference in the scores after the first game.

But to Saracens, the game is of the utmost importance. The PPCC is the most likely way into next year's Heineken Cup for the Men in Black and with their opponents worrying more about their current league position than this competition, the result that the Sarries fans will want could well come about.

Roast duck and braised falcon for Sunday tea, anyone?