Thank you.  It's just one of my (very many) good points.

TDH, get to bed and have a decent night's sleep for a change.  

Um, no. I won't. Or is that willn't?

I have been busy forging links with Tynedale RFC (TRFC, they call theselves.  So there!)

Forging crisp £5 notes more like.

Any Crisp Fivers must come to me first please

I've been forging £30.00 notes.  Perfect for buying 10 pints of Guiness in my local pub (Grrr)

Thought you might be interested in a match report from our first pre-season game. To put it in context, 3 of the first team squad were at the Middlesex 7s and another 2 in the Falcons match day squad for their own pre-season game, so not desperately enlightening. Anyway, here's the report from the visitors http://www.boroughmuirrfc.co.uk/BPages/Reports/1st%20XV/FTynedaleA/1st-F-TynedaleAl.htm

Thanks for that QM,seems to me you put up a good fight against a very strong club.Looking forward to hard game when we visit,which seems to be creeping up fairly quickly now.

Last season we played them at the same stage in a 3 way tournament and the result was 0-0. Shocking weather though back then and I would hate to draw any sort of comparison from the two games.

So QM how many Newcastle players will you have on loan this season compared to Blaydon?

Difficult to answer because the Falcons will not be playing regular development games and their fringe players will be playing ND2 for Tyne or Blaydon. Also difficult because the definition of a Falcons player is very tenuous. Example is Andrew Fenby of Blaydon, who has been scoring bucket loads of tries in the last few seasons. He got a few games for the Dev team last season and was on the bench for the Falcons warmer yesterday. Is he a Falcons player? Obviously he would prefer to play GP rugby than ND2, but moot point. We have several youngsters who have come through our minis and juniors and moved on to Falons academy. They still play regularly for us, but once again, are they playing on loan or playing for their first choice club? I would say there will be about 3 or 4 players who have been picked up by Falcons who will be loaned out to each club on a regular basis who were not in the mix last year. Blaydon have picked up a number of players who had Falcons academy contracts but didn't make the breakthrough. We have a much younger team (average age about 24). Sorry that isn't partiularly helpful, but you don't know until the season starts who is where in the Falcons pecking order and thus available for Tyne or Blaydon. There are probably only about 2 first team players at either club who haven't had a game for the Falcons dev side at some stage

Surely these players have to be registered to a particular club, or are they all on dual registration?
Can players be loaned from Newcastle on a week to week basis or does it have to be for a fixed period?
I guess if the Falcons have a few injuries, Tynedale/Blaydon could lose a few of their top boys. Falcons won't lose as many players for international call ups with Tait and Flood leaving, but do they have adequate replacements?

WNC,
      I think you'll find that a lot of these Newcastle Falcons players are young lads,who are showing promise but not yet ready for the step up to full premiership level and will probably be there for the season(like Paul Andrew at Bay).
The Pirates had 3 Newcastle players at the start of last season on loan until the end of the world cup but none of them made any real impression and didn't stay,a couple of them went out on loan to Blaydon on their return up North.
The credit crunch has affected a lot of the premiership clubs and the first thing to go has been there squad size and the 'A' team has suffered so I think you'll find a lot of players out on loan in Nat 1 or 2 this season,who have premiership connections.

PP, not necessarily good news for Cornish clubs, who don't perhaps have the same connections with the Premiership clubs. Look at the season long loan deals done by Bedford with Saints and Leicester, for example.
Agree with you about the Falcons 3. I saw the prop Johnny Williams, come off the bench for Falcons in a heavy defeat at Sale, and he also spent time at Tynedale, so it's a fluid picture.

You can probably put these guys into three categories. Youngsters who are learning the senior game and who will be placed with either a North 1, N3N or ND2 club according to their standard on a season long loan. Then there are guys who are perhaps third or fourth choice in their position at Falcons and who would be mainly at the junior club but who might be needed in case of injury or international calls and then there are others on the fringe of the first team squad who might need some game time to get their match fitness up to scratch. We haven't seen much of the third type of player up to now as they have recuperated in the development side, but there are several in the first two categories. Don't know about registration, but it must be straightforward because this type of arrangement is commonplace. Leicester players pop up all over the place for instance. Jonny Williams came up through Tynedale Colts so will only play here unless required by Falcons. He is a great team player and very popular with the fans at both clubs.

Headline from Fylde website:

Fylde blitzed by brilliant Tynedale

Writer: Allan Foster

Fylde 21 Tynedale 62

Following a respectable first half at the end of which the home side trailed Tynedale by 14-17, the North Easterners turned on the style and completely ripped apart the Fylde defence in the second period. They scored no fewer than seven tries during that 40 minutes. Fylde battled away and scored the final try to round off a cautionary experience that will give the coaches plenty to think about as they prepare for the first league game against Huddersfield at the Woodlands next Saturday.

Tynedale scored the first try of the afternoon after 10 minutes following a period of sustained pressure on the Fylde line. The home defence was already under the cosh as their scrummage was never secure and their lineout ball rather a lottery. Tynedale played the new experimental laws with great enthusiasm, always looking to run the ball from every part of the pitch and hardly ever kicking to touch. In comparison Fylde looked rather as if they were playing under the old laws but at this stage of the contest managed to paper over the cracks with last ditch defence and opportunistic attacks.

Scrum half Craig Aikman scored Fylde's first try on 15 minutes, made by Nick Royle's dramatic burst down the right touchline and kick ahead. Royle then scored a try in the corner only for it to be overruled for a foot in touch as he was in the act of scoring. But he made up for it 10 minutes later when he was put away in his own half and scorched past a despairing Tyne defence. 14-5 up and matters looked very positive for the home side. But the afternoon started to unravel in the five minute period before half-time as the visitors exposed some weak Fylde defending and scored two tries in their left corner. One was converted and Tyne had a 17-14 lead at the interval.

Injury had forced Fylde fullback Mike Waywell off after 20 minutes and Dan Loader replaced him. With next week's league opener in the front of coach Mark Nelson's mind skipper Roger Banks and fellow lock Nick King had also picked up knocks and were withdrawn at the break, along with the voracious Nick Royle.

What was to come in the first 35 minutes of the second period was a total destruction of Fylde's defences as Tynedale took complete control of the game. Their scrummage was now totally dominant, shoving the Fylde eight backwards at a rate of knots on their own ball. They were first to the loose ball and the tackle breakdown and gave a brilliant display of continuity and support play.

As Tynedale ran the ball from all parts of the pitch, Fylde's play imploded. They rarely wrestled any possession from the visitors and their defence cracked in the most dramatic style. Tynedale scored seven tries in a one-sided display of running rugby. England U'20s star Rob Miller and Gavin Beasley, both with Newcastle Falcons Premiership experience, also found their goal kicking range and converted five of the tries.    

The last laugh on an afternoon of few for Fylde came in the final minutes of the game. Winger Oli Brennand lookes sharp throughout and had several dangerous runs. He broke away once more from half-way and found flanker Dan Palmer in support. Palmer held the ball up well and linked with Martin Wallwork who darted through the Tyne defence to go under the posts. Steve Nutt converted and covered a modicum of embarrassment for his side on a one-sided afternoon.

Whilst Fylde will rarely come up against such slick opponents in National Three (North) this season, it was a stark warning to their coaches and players about the standards that they have to achieve if they are to mount a sustained promotion campaign. There's much to be worked on ahead of Huddersfield's visit next Saturday and not a moment on the training pitch must be wasted.

A good crowd turned out on a sunny afternoon and a considerable sum was raised for the Help for Heroes charity campaign to assist injured services personnel.

Also from the Fylde site in their preview:

"Tynedale's squad includes a handful of new players including former Newcastle Falcons Premiership players Jamie Hoyle (wing) & Eni Gesinde (flanker), winger Peter Cole (ex-Morpeth), hooker Joe Graham (ex-Carlisle) & lock Kevin Showler (ex-Durham City). The latter three have County Championship experience with Northumberland, Cumbria & Durham respectively.

Tyne's star player is probably the immensely promising England U'20 goalkicking fly-half or fullback Rob Miller. Miller had a fine schoolboy record in his native Cumbria, played for local club Aspatria alongside former Fylde skipper Mike Scott and then moved on to Newcastle Falcons & Tynedale. He's already made a number of Premiership appearances for the Falcons.

The visitors will be looking for an improvement in their pre-season form - they have lost both games so far, against Scottish Premiership sides Melrose (24-29) & Boroughmuir.

Provisional squad

BACKS: Jamie Hoyle, Peter Cole, Jack Harrison, Jamie Harrison, Matthew Horrocks, Gavin Beasley, Rob Miller, Ross Sampson, Guy Rundle, Alex Fieldhouse, Jonny Fieldhouse.

ORWARDS: Rupert Harden, Jonny Williams, Peter Southern, Joe Graham, Aaron Charlton, Colin Scullion, Ben Marshall, Kevin Showler, Eni Gesinde, Grant Beasley, Grant Rastall, Stuart Johnson, Graeme McGilchrist, Andrew Murray. "

I suspect Rob Miller played at IC and if he is playing against Bay next week, I am sure you will appreciate his pace and silky running. There are four or five first choice players missing from that list.

Should be an interesting weekend!.

What a PR guy this is for trfc nearly as good as a certain Mr Westren. Nearly all his threads have been presented to scare us, Not So Mr QM we are Bay

Some do look quite useful players. I am sure they could be earning a few bob at a professional club instead of sticking it out with poor, amateur, no-money Tynedale.