Richards laments failure to finish
Despite leading 7-3 at half time, five Tim Swiel penalties put the Falcons outside of losing bonus point range across the full eighty minutes at Twickenham Stoop on Saturday.
“It was not the losing bonus point we wanted, it was the win.” Richards lamented.
“We went down there looking for five points and we could well have done that when you look at the stats and the line-breaks that we made.
“Quins created minimal opportunities in comparison, and for them to come away with the win is galling.
Making most of the running, the Falcons created a number of big chances but scored the only try of the game through Alesana Tuilagi.
The Director of Rugby said: “It was not about the penalties given away it was about the missed opportunities for us, and that was the most galling thing.
“We should have scored four or five tries easily, and we broke Quins with ease but we just didn’t capitalise on it and finish it off. We weren’t clinical enough, and that is probably what today is about rather than the penalties we conceded.”
“We felt we shot ourselves in the foot, and that is just the way it is.”
Despite the disappointing result, the Falcons received much praise for a first half performance which saw them cause many problems for Harlequins.
“We stuck to our structure, and we have got incredibly good ball-carriers who are not afraid to attack the line.
“It is just that when we do make the breaks, which we do on a lot of occasions, we just need to have that little bit of patience. On Saturday we didn’t show that patience, which is what we needed to do.”
Delighted by much of what his young side did on the day, the Falcons’ boss added: “Six out of our eight in the pack were 24 or under.
“That bodes well for the future, and there were only the old men Bobby Vickers and Ally Hogg taking the average up!
“If we can keep that pack together for the next five or six years we will have a fantastic team, when you also take into account backs like Juan Pablo Socino, Adam Powell, Noah Cato, Tom Catterick and those boys.
“It’s definitely looking good for the club in that sense.”
The Falcons’ next match will see them take on Saracens in their big festive fixture at Kingston Park this Saturday (ko 3pm). Tickets for the game are selling fast but are still available starting from just £15 for adults and £7.50 for juniors.
For more information or to get yours click [here][1], visit the Falcons’ East Stand Ticket Office or call the club’s 24 hour Ticket Hotline on 0871 226 6060.
[1]: http://www.newcastlefalcons.co.uk/Pages/Tickets/info
