Newcastle Rewrite the Finale of a Flawed Classic

No sooner had the final whistle sounded on a vivid Newcastle triumph than some curmudgeonly voices were attempting to drown out the Blaydon Races.

Too loose, too defensively lax and, frankly, too ludicrous were the most common accusations, levelled as usual by those who insist real rugby can only be played by lumbering leviathans in six inches of mud.

Everyone else, including Sale's downcast players and supporters, preferred to see this game for what it really was: one of the great English knockout finals, a flawed classic in certain respects but memorable for the spirit of adventure shown by both sides.

What is it with people who cannot relish sport which is both meaningful and fun at the same time? For make no mistake this breathless seven-try game of northern roulette mattered hugely to both sides.

Newcastle can now effectively put their feet up, a priceless Heineken Cup place safely banked for next season. The Sharks, in contrast, must put their faith in the Zurich wildcard system and somehow banish their sense of utter dejection at having snatched defeat from the jaws of victory.

Suicidal, in fact, is barely too strong a description of the feelings of Charlie Hodgson, whose charged-down kick led to the decisive late score by the replacement flanker Phil Dowson.

His skipper Pete Anglesea sounded equally bleak. "How does it feel?" muttered Anglesea.

"It's the nearest feeling I've ever had to death. It's like losing a member of your family. You feel like bawling your eyes out."

The contrast with his fellow ginger-haired counterpart Hugh Vyvyan could hardly have been greater, the soon-todepart No8 calling it "the best rugby experience of my life".

It was the marauding Vyvyan, who at this rate should not give up on a full England cap, whose hands deflected Hodgson's fateful clearance and the captain's close-range try early in the second-half also did much to secure a second Powergen Cup title for the Falcons in four seasons.

As Vyvyan and the 22-year-old Dowson were both born in Guildford and the chief watercarrier was none other than the home counties' favourite son Jonny Wilkinson, this is hardly a team of pure-bred Geordies but, as with Newcastle United's Uefa Cup-chasing side, what counts is a willingness to commit everything to the black-and-white cause.

Rob Andrew, Newcastle's director of rugby, has insisted for some time his club have a bright future and here was proof of a youthful team maturing nicely.

Jamie Noon, for example, is now a high-quality centre by any standards, although the fly-half Dave Walder was grateful Newcastle finished as strongly as they did. With his side trailing 30-24, the standoff spurned a simple penalty in favour of kicking for the corner, only to commit the cardinal sin of booting the ball dead.

Luckily he atoned with two penalties to level the scores at 30-30 going into the last tumultuous 10 minutes when, fittingly for a side with a Lilley and a Thompson on the pitch, the Falcons finally displayed a fast bowler's ruthlessness.

If Hodgson looked about as chipper afterwards as the owner of the burnt-out burger van behind the South Stand which caused some pre-match disruption, he should not despair completely.

As yet he is not back to full match fitness following knee surgery and he remains a player possessed of a rare creative spark. To blame him alone for Sale's inability to hang on to a lead which changed hands a total of six times would be grossly unfair.

Where the Sharks were far more culpable was in the efficiency of their fringe defence, a sizeable hole allowing Warren Britz to open the scoring after just seven minutes.

Neither did luck always go their way, with Steve Hanley twice denied when the ball bounced high over his head rather than into his arms.

Mark Cueto's slicing score and a softer try for Chris Mayor should have ensured it made no difference but Newcastle never gave up.

"It was almost a case of whoever had the ball when the music stopped took the cup away," confessed Andrew, his mind already racing ahead to another European campaign.

"We'll be more prepared for it than we were last time."

Before that, these two sides meet again in the Premiership on Friday and Sale may yet join Andrew's men in Europe by the most circuitous of routes. It is all fiendishly complicated but, basically, if Wasps win the Heineken Cup this season, the Sharks could be defeated in a wildcard semifinal by either Gloucester or Northampton yet still be invited to Twickenham as lucky losers for the wildcard final on May 29.

Newcastle are set to lose their assistant coach Andrew Blades at the end of the season after agreeing to release the former Australia international prop to join the Wallabies coaching set-up.

Teams

Newcastle: Shaw (Lilley, 58); May, Noon, Mayerhofler, Stephenson; Walder, Grindal (Charlton, 47); Peel (Hurter, 30), Makin (Thompson, 55), Ward (Peel, 53), Archer (Hamilton, 64), Grimes, Dunbar, Britz (Dowson, 64), Vyvyan (capt).

Tries: Britz, Vyvyan, Shaw, Dowson.

Cons: Walder 4.

Pens: Walder 3.

Sale: Robinson; Cueto, Mayor, Baxendell, Hanley; Hodgson, Walshe; Sheridan, Titterrell (Cairns, 63), Stewart (Turner, 63), Fullarton, White, Anglesea (capt; Perrett 57), Sanderson, Jones.

Tries: Hanley, Cueto, Mayor.

Cons: Hodgson 3.

Pens: Hodgson 4.

Referee: T Spreadbury (Somerset).