By Leipziger
April 27 2007

It seems just last week that we were basking in the sunshine at Franklin’s Gardens watching the Falcons lose to Northampton in September. Now almost eight months on another season comes to a close, and a lot of us will say an emotional goodbye until August this weekend. But we have one last hurrah, a home match against European Challenge Cup finalists Bath, to go tomorrow in front of what could be a sold-out Kingston Park on a day forecast to be sunny. Lets go out with a bang, rather than the whimper we have shown on Bath’s last two visits north.

In September 2005, our start to the home season went from bad to worse when following a defeat to Bristol, Matt Stevens, Martyn Wood, Zak Feau’nati and James Scaysbrook saw the visitors return to the south west with a bonus point. This despite Matthew Burke’s try helping us to a 16-8 lead at the break, before Bath’s 19 unanswered second half points.

This came after a drab 5-9 loss in March 2005, a week before the Stade quarter-final, when Tom May’s first minute try was also our last points of the day.

Our last win over Bath was during the World Cup, a televised 19-17 victory which was Bath’s first defeat of a season in which they topped the league.

This year Bath like us haven’t had the best of times in the Premiership, they sit tenth, though without the danger of relegation (unlike 2002-03 when we met them on the last day!) following a run of only one win in their last eight league games, at home to Northampton in March.

In Europe their form has been better and last week saw a tight 30-31 defeat of Saracens at Vicarage Road to qualify for the Challenge Cup final against our conquerors Clermont-Auvergne at the Stoop. Incredibly, the game brought back memories of our semi against London Irish last season, with Bath 8-21 up after 32 minutes before Dan Scarborough touched down with three minutes left, but Glen Jackson’s missed conversion sealed Sarries’ fate.

Injury to Jonny Wilkinson sees Toby Flood move to fly-half tomorrow, and locks Jason Oakes and Mark Sorenson return from knocks. Andy Long is hooker in our hunt to end the season with a tenth successive home win:

15 Matthew Burke (captain)
14 Tom May
13 Mathew Tait
12 Jamie Noon
11 John Rudd
10 Toby Flood
9 James Grindal
1 Joe McDonnell
2 Andy Long
3 Micky Ward
4 Mark Sorenson
5 Jason Oakes
6 Geoff Parling
7 Ben Woods
8 Phil Dowson

Replacements:
Jon Golding
Matt Thompson
Andy Buist
Brent Wilson
Ollie Phillips
Hall Charlton
Loki Crichton

Standing tickets still left at the time of writing (I think), so get yourself along on Saturday or forever hold your peace (well, until next season). And don’t forget the second annual Falconsrugby end of season ‘Medium Bash’ on Saturday night, most likely at the Bodega, 125 Westgate Road in the Toon.