Gloucester v Newcastle: Teams
Gloucester head coach Bryan Redpath admits there is "a lot at stake" when his side entertain Newcastle on Saturday.
Last Updated: 13/04/12 12:33pm
Gloucester head coach Bryan Redpath admits there is "a lot at stake" when his side entertain Newcastle on Saturday.
With Newcastle fighting for their Aviva Premiership survival and Gloucester clinging on to the last Heineken Cup spot, neither side can afford to slip up.
And Redpath, who has recalled Eliota Fuimaono-Sapolu, Mike Tindall and Alex Brown to his line-up, is aware of how important the victory is to both clubs.
"Newcastle are fighting for their lives to stay in the Premiership while we're fighting to stay in the top six," he said.
"Top six is very important for us. The Heineken Cup is important to the club, this year's matches were great and we want to see it back at Kingsholm next year.
"So, there's a lot of stake for both clubs and some people will say there's more at stake for someone who's fighting for their livelihood.
Dangerous
"But, in my eyes, we have to fight to make sure we reward our home fans for their loyalty and the consistent support they've given us.
"They (Newcastle) are dangerous. We have to be very disciplined, committed and have an intensity around our defence. We can score tries but we've been leaking too many as well."
Newcastle go into the clash on the back of warm weather training in the Algarve.
Falcons director of rugby Gary Gold said: "It was a good exercise for us in terms of reassessing where we are after the last three games.
"We gave some of the lads some valuable game time and it is reassuring to know that if we have injuries those players can step up to the plate."
Gold has made four changes to his line-up, with Greg Goosen, Ryan Shortland, former Gloucester forward Adam Balding and James Hudson handed starts.
Gloucester: 15 Jonny May, 14 Charlie Sharples, 13 Mike Tindall, 12 Eliota Fuimaono-Sapolu, 11 James Simpson-Daniel, 10 Freddie Burns, 9 Nick Runciman, 1 Dan Murphy, 2 Scott Lawson, 3 Rupert Harden, 4 Jim Hamilton, 5 Alex Brown, 6 Peter Buxton, 7 Akapusi Qera, 8 Luke Narraway (capt)
Replacements: 16 Darren Dawidiuk, 17 Yann Thomas, 18 Shaun Knight, 19 Will James, 20 Alasdair Strokosch, 21 Dave Lewis, 22 Tim Taylor, 23 Tim Molenaar
Newcastle: 15 Greg Goosen, 14 Corne Uys, 13 Jamie Helleur, 12 James Fitzpatrick, 11 Ryan Shortland, 10 Jimmy Gopperth (c), 9 Peter Stringer, 8 Adam Balding 7 Will Welch, 6 Ally Hogg, 5 Tim Swinson, 4 James Hudson, 3 Euan Murray, 2 Rob Vickers, 1 Jonny Golding.
Replacements: 16 Matt Thompson, 17 Grant Shiells, 18 James Hall, 19 James Goode, 20 Taiasina Tu'ifua, 21 Mark Wilson, 22 Will Chudley, 23 Tom Catterick