2020-21 European Rugby Challenge Cup – Castres vs Newcastle Falcons Preview & Prediction
THE FACTS
When is Castres vs Newcastle Falcons taking place? Friday 18th December, 2020 – 17:30 (UK)
Where is Castres vs Newcastle Falcons taking place? Stade Pierre-Antoine, Castres
Where can I get tickets for Castres vs Newcastle Falcons? Visit official club websites for ticket information
What television channel is Castres vs Newcastle Falcons on? BT Sport have the rights to televise European Rugby Challenge Cup matches so it is worth checking their schedule
Where can I stream Castres vs Newcastle Falcons? If televised, BT Sport subscribers can stream the match live via the BT Sport website & app
THE TEAM NEWS
Castres: 15 Clément Clavieres, 14 Bastien Guillemin, 13 Vilimoni Botitu, 12 Florian Vialelle (c), 11 Antoine Bouzerand, 10 Louis Le Brun, 9 Jérémy Fernandez, 8 Hugo Hermet, 7 Kevin Kornath, 6 Stephane Onambele Mbarga, 5 Dorian Clerc, 4 Simon Meka, 3 Matthew Tierney, 2 Kevin Firmin, 1 Wayan de Benedittis
Replacements: 16 Pierre Colonna, 17 Alexis Decaux, 18 Thomas Vidal, 19 Rian Olivier, 20 Baptiste Cope, 21 Bastien Bourgier, 22 Joris Dupont, 23 Adrien Amans
Newcastle Falcons: 15 Tom Arscott, 14 Zach Kerr, 13 Peter Lucock, 12 Joel Matavesi, 11 Cooper Vuna, 10 Brett Connon, 9 Sam Stuart, 8 Josh Basham, 7 Mark Wilson (c), 6 Tom Marshall, 5 Darren Barry, 4 Rob Farrar, 3 Rodney Ah You, 2 Charlie Maddison, 1 Kyle Cooper
Replacements: 16 Jamie Blamire, 17 Adam Brocklebank, 18 Michael Daniels, 19 Freddie Lockwood, 20 Christoffel van der Walt, 21 Callum Pascoe, 22 William Haydon-Wood, 23 Chidera Obonna
THE PREDICTION
Castres ended up losing by some margin away to Ospreys in their first Challenge Cup match of the new season and will have to tighten up defensively after the struggling Pro14 side put 39 points past them. They certainly have a chance at home against visiting Newcastle Falcons, who will make the long trip after losing their first match of the season at home to Cardiff Blues last weekend, but Castres will be the underdogs on their own turf. It remains to be seen if the Falcons’ loss to Cardiff has broken their Premiership spell but they should be able to navigate to victory here in a match that goes over 40 points.
