Newcastle's canny plan in tatters
October 27 2008
Newcastle boss Steve Bates has had his autumn Guinness Premiership revival plans left in tatters as the club's medical team nurses a mini-injury crisis.
The Falcons Director of Rugby was left counting the ailments after Friday's defeat to Wasps as Carl Hayman, Ross Beattie and Adam Balding joined Ed Williamson, Jonny Wilkinson, Jamie Noon and Andy Buist in the treatment room.
And in a period where Bates was targeting a run of positive results whilst other English teams are without international stars, Newcastle could find their hoped advantage levelled out.
However, there is some good news at Kingston Park as Wellington and Junior All Black Tane Tu'ipulotu will join up with the squad next week after Air NZ duties.
Next up for the Falcons is the visit of Gloucester in the EDF Energy Cup game before a free weekend when England take on the Pacific Islanders at Twickenham on November 8.
But following that short break, November's schedule sees three successive league fixtures - against London Irish, Worcester Warriors and champions Wasps once more.
And unsurprisingly Bates is hoping for several swift returns from injury before the Exiles travel north on November 16.
"We could definitely do with some, or all, of those players fit by then, but that's always the case, isn't it," Bates said, speaking to Newcastle's Evening Chronicle.
"Injuries obviously have to be planned for as much as possible. But certainly for the visit of Gloucester, we could be struggling to rest some people that we might have chosen to if we had more bodies.
"I shouldn't think that all these guys will still be injured come the time the league resumes, and we'll give them every chance to be fit. But in an ideal world there would be a handful of players who would be rested against Gloucester.
"We don't have that luxury, so now we just have to be quite cute about how we handle the next couple of weeks, and how we manage the players."