Newcastle Falcons welcomed a season's best crowd of 8,766 to Kingston Park for Sunday's Guinness Premiership visit of Leeds Carnegie.

Falcons commercial director Christine Balford said: “This was our biggest home attendance for over a year-and-a-half, a tremendous achievement which provided a great family atmosphere on the day.

“All of the club’s corporate areas were completely sold out, and having received excellent feedback on the match-day experience we look forward to welcoming back many first-time visitors to Kingston Park.”

Elaborating on the feat, Balford added: “Guests love the fact that our players are so involved, and as well as their efforts on the field they offer an experience unique from other sports by mingling with fans in the bars after the game.

“The club continues to implement new initiatives with our Community Foundation, taking the game into schools, clubs and encouraging more active participation as well as attending matches at Kingston Park. This is very much at the heart of what we are about, and our younger supporters are the future of the club.”

Having seen a major effort to get the match on in the first place, Balford said: “The fact that Sunday’s game took place at all, given the inclement conditions, was a major feat in itself.

“It was only possible due to a monumental effort from our supporters, who assisted club staff in removing snow from the field to ensure a playable surface for what was a huge day for the Falcons.

“Whilst the narrow 16-15 defeat was obviously not the desired result in the end, the turn-out and support extended to the club was a major positive as we look ahead to the next year and beyond.

“Naturally such a strong attendance will highlight areas where we can make further improvements to our matchday experience, and those efforts are ongoing behind the scenes as we look to build on the fantastic support on show against Leeds.

“But we will continue to promote our fixtures through various innovative means and work hand-in-hand with our supporters, as we ensure strong foundations for the future of Newcastle Falcons.”