NEWCASTLE FALCONS will attempt to regain some momentum when they travel to Newport Gwent Dragons on Sunday, even though they have next-to-no chance of making the knock-out stage of the Anglo-Welsh Cup.

Falcons lost their opening two games of this season’s Anglo-Welsh competition, against Northampton and Saracens, and would need a miracle to progress from their pool.

Nevertheless, with the Aviva Premiership programme due to resume at Sale in two weeks’ time, they will field a strengthened line-up as they look to get back on track after a two-week hiatus for the European Challenge Cup.

Regular first-teamers Juan Pablo Socino, Sonatane Takulua, Vereniki Goneva, Belisario Agulla, Scott Lawson and Evan Olmstead all return to the side as Falcons look to record a third successive victory at Rodney Parade.

“You don’t need to be a brain surgeon to work out that having lost our first two games in the Anglo-Welsh Cup, it’s going to be pretty difficult to go through,” said Falcons head coach John Wells.

“That said, we are going out with all guns firing in Newport, we have selected a good team and when you look at this fixture in relation to when the Premiership resumes it is a good opportunity to get a bit of stability back. We are a team which thrives on continuity, we need to start getting that back now and this is probably that first little step.

“We have guys involved this weekend who have not played a lot of rugby over the last few weeks for whatever reason, and this is their chance to get up and running again. That will be good for them and for us, and it is also a chance to play a good Welsh side away from home. The crowd down there will make it tough, but we want to win the game regardless of the permutations.”

Newcastle Falcons: Tait, Agulla, Harris, Socino, Goneva, Hodgson, Takulua; Vickers, Lawson, Welsh, Green, Olmstead, Robinson, Welch, M Wilson.

Replacements: Cooper, Brocklebank, Foster, Botha, Chick, M Young, Willis, Waldouck.