Toby Flood returns to Newcastle Falcons’ team as Bath visit Kingston Park tonight.

The fly-half missed last week’s game at Saracens with a head knock but is fit and one of six changes, as the Falcons go for a sixth successive home victory in all competitions.

Aiming to do a league double over Bath following a 33-32 victory at The Rec in September, Newcastle welcome back the Scotland pair of Chris Harris and Jon Welsh to their starting XV following a fortnight on Six Nations duty.

Canadian international Evan Olmstead starts on the blind-side flank in the only other change to the pack, fit-again centre Josh Matavesi and full-back Alex Tait the other two changes.

Director of rugby Dean Richards said: “When you look at Bath’s side on paper they’ve got a fantastic bunch of players, even with guys away through Six Nations duty.

“They’re a star-studded outfit, but it holds no fear for us. We’ve shown we can beat them this season, we understand what’s needed. If Bath turn up they’re a very difficult side to beat, but so are we.

“We played them a few weeks ago in the Anglo-Welsh Cup and in the first half had opportunity after opportunity, but we just didn’t put them away. Had we done so it would have been a different outcome, and they will be worried by the amount of chances we created. Should we start converting those into points it will be a very hard game for them, but they’re a good side and they will have done their homework on us.’’

He added: “Overall we’re starting to deliver what we set out to do, we’re becoming more consistent but it has taken a bit of time.

“The game has evolved since we came back up, there has been some big spending going on around the league and in that respect we’ve been chasing our tails a little.

“But we’re getting there, we have a stability and quality in the side and a growing maturity in the group. Guys who were 21 during our Championship season are now in their prime with a bank of experience behind them, and we’re getting the rewards from that.”

Falcons’ run of four successive league victories was ended last weekend with a 25-3 loss at European champions Saracens.

Richards admitted: “We’re at a stage now of being ultra-critical on ourselves, and we feel we didn’t turn up on the day.

“If you compare it with previous seasons we probably did better at Saracens than we have done in recent years, but the beauty now is that guys are setting higher standards and are looking at every single detail in terms of how we look to improve. We’re gradually getting there, and we’ve won nine of our last 11 games. That’s not a bad record but it’s understanding how to win the big games which counts, and being competitive every single time.

“We’ve shown we can beat most sides on our day by defeating the likes of Exeter, Northampton, Bath or whoever, but ultimately we need to be doing that against the Wasps and Saracens of this world. That’s where we want to be, and we’re gradually getting there in terms of having the consistency of performance that we need.’’

While the 6 national takes a break after the opening weekends, Richards admits he’s an avid viewer.

“It’s a bit of a busman’s holiday for me, to be honest,’’ he said. “Like everyone else I’m just a rugby fan when it comes down to it, and I can watch the games partly as an England supporter and partly as a rugby coach looking at the various trends. I enjoy doing the fantasy league and the prediction pool, although I’m stuck in mid-table in our Falcons office league. The chef and the kit man are both beating me, which is a bit galling, but it’s all good fun and we have a good bit of banter about it.”