NEWCASTLE FALCONS forward Ally Hogg has denied that tomorrow's home game with Worcester Warriors is a ‘relegation decider’, even though a victory would leave Dean Richards’ side at least 11 points clear of the drop zone.

Tenth-placed Falcons are currently two points clear of Worcester, with basement boys London Irish a further five points back as the battle to avoid relegation to the Championship hots up.

Newcastle have won their last six home games in all competitions, and while last weekend’s thumping defeat at Gloucester represented something of a backwards step, they will still start tomorrow's game as strong favourites.

A win would go a long way towards guaranteeing their top-flight status for next season, but with seven games still to come after tomorrow’s outing, Hogg insists nothing will be decided today.

“We have been in a few of these games now,” said Hogg, whose 48 international caps for Scotland make him one of the most experienced members of the Falcons squad. “This game isn’t do or die.

“I have been in that situation, and this isn’t it. There are still plenty of games left no matter what happens, and you just become a little bit numb to all the chat regarding deciders and all that.

“It is for other people to worry about hyping it up, not us. We just go out there to perform as well as we can, and if we do that we will be there or thereabouts.”

Falcons are still to claim their first league away win this season, but their home form over the last few weeks has been superb, with wins over Bath, Harlequins, Leicester and Northampton making a huge difference to their position in the table.

Kingston Park has always been a difficult venue for opposition teams to visit, but Hogg feels the move to an artificial surface has made the Falcons even more difficult to face on their own ground.

“Every team plays better at home,” he said. “You are used to your own environment, there is no travel involved and all that kind of stuff, and on top of that, we have the confidence of some recent positive results here.

“When we have a pitch like ours it is also an advantage because you know what you are getting. You can play some quality rugby on it, and that type of surface is definitely the future of the sport.

“It takes out some of the elements of the game which some traditionalists might go against, but as a pure spectacle and in the business of entertaining, it makes a massive difference.”

Richards has made five changes to Falcons’ starting line-up, with Alex Tait returning to the right wing in place of Giamba Venditti, Andy Goode back at fly-half after shaking off the niggle that forced him to miss the defeat at Gloucester and Michael Young restored at scrum-half.

Mark Wilson resumes his second-row partnership with Sean Robinson, while Nili Latu returns from injury to accompany Hogg and skipper Will Welch in the back row.

Newcastle Falcons: Hammersley, Tait, Harris, Powell, Watson, Goode, Young; Vickers, Lawson, Vea, M Wilson, Robinson, Welch, Latu, Hogg.

Replacements: McGuigan, Rogers, Hatakeyama, Botha, Chick, Takulua, Willis, Socino.