Captain Callum Chick makes his first appearance of the season for Newcastle Falcons on Friday when they host northern rivals Sale Sharks in the Premiership Rugby Cup.

The 7.45pm kick-off at Kingston Park Stadium sees the Falcons looking to build on a positive start to the campaign which has them top of their pool after taking maximum points from their opening games against Ampthill and Bedford.

Chick packs down on the blind-side flank after working hard to recover from an off-season shoulder operation, leading a side which sees Guy Pepper making his first start in more than nine months.

The homegrown open-side has impressed as a replacement during the opening two rounds of the competition and joins a pack which includes a first start for hooker Michael van Vuuren.

Ben Stevenson starts on the left wing after spending last week out in France training with England’s Rugby World Cup squad, following in the footsteps of 18-year-old Ben Redshaw who was with the national side the week before.

Redshaw makes his first start for the Falcons after debuting from the bench in last week’s bonus-point win over Bedford, with Brett Connon, Hugh O’Sullivan and Tom Penny all restored to the back division having featured in the opening-day triumph at Ampthill.

Scrum-half Sam Stuart is named on the bench after overcoming injury, with head coach Alex Codling expecting a stern challenge from Friday’s visitors.

He said: “Sale a very physical side who are big on their set-piece, kick-chase, breakdown and defence, and we’ll have to be on our mettle if we are to get on the front foot looking to play.

“It’s a big test for us, but one that the boys are very much looking forward to.”

Currently on top of their group having accrued the full ten points, Codling said: “The Premiership Rugby Cup has been a really useful exercise so far for us.

“We’ve used more than 30 players over the two games and had two positive results – albeit we are fully aware we need to take a big step forward on Friday against Premiership opposition.

“Last time out I thought the boys really stuck in the fight against Bedford in some really tough weather conditions which posed different questions compared to the heatwave we’d had at Ampthill the week before.

“The players adapted really well in both instances, but come Friday we’ll need to be better against a quality Sale outfit. They’re a very well coached side and it will be a test in all aspects for us, but we’re excited by the challenge of facing a team who played in the Premiership final only a few months ago.”

Delighted to have Chick back on board to captain the side, the Falcons boss added: “It’s really good news for us that Callum is fit and available to lead out the team.

“He’s been with the boys running the water on during our last two games, and he is a really important part of what we’re about. He has worked incredibly hard over the past few months and been keen to stay involved during that time in whatever way he could.

“I’m delighted to have him back involved from a playing perspective, and as well as adding to the team I know he’ll take huge pride in captaining the group.”

Newcastle’s preparation for Friday’s game has seen them heading over the Scottish border for the second time this summer, having enjoyed a joint training session against Edinburgh at Melrose RFC.

“We’ve spent 13 weeks together in pre-season training and had a couple of Premiership Rugby Cup games, but the more opportunities we can have to train against different teams and be exposed to different environments, the better,” explained Codling, whose squad also trained against Edinburgh in Galashiels last month.

“The geography with Edinburgh works well for both teams and once again it’s been a useful exercise – not least because it was hosing down in Newcastle but was nice and dry up in Melrose!

“All joking aside though Edinburgh are a quality outfit, and it’s great that we’ve got that positive relationship where both teams can see the mutual benefits in sessions like we’ve had up there.”

Tickets for Friday’s game against Sale Sharks are priced just £15 for adults and £7 for under-18s in all areas of the stadium by clicking here.

Season ticket and season parking pass holders who booked before July 18 are reminded this game IS included in their 2023-24 package.

Newcastle Falcons team v Sale Sharks (Friday, 7.45pm, Kingston Park)

15 Ben Redshaw, 14 Adam Radwan, 13 Tom Penny, 12 Matias Orlando, 11 Ben Stevenson, 10 Brett Connon, 9 Hugh O’Sullivan; 1 Adam Brocklebank, 2 Michael van Vuuren, 3 Richard Palframan, 4 Tim Cardall, 5 Sebastian de Chaves, 6 Callum Chick (captain), 7 Guy Pepper, 8 Freddie Lockwood.

Replacements: 16 Ollie Fletcher, 17 Phil Brantingham, 18 Mark Tampin, 19 John Kelly, 20 Josh Bainbridge, 21 Sam Stuart, 22 Louie Johnson, 23 Zach Kerr.

Sale Sharks: 15 Joe Carpenter, 14 Tom O’Flaherty, 13 Connor Doherty, 12 Sam Bedlow, 11 Arron Reed, 10 Tom Curtis (captain), 9 Gus Warr; 1 Ross Harrison, 2 Nathan Langdon, 3 Nick Schonert, 4 Ben Bamber, 5 Jonny Hill, 6 Ernst van Rhyn, 7 Sam Dugdale, 8 Jean-Luc du Preez.

Replacements: 16 Harry Thompson, 17 Tumy Onasanya, 18 James Harper, 19 Alex Groves, 20 Rouban Birch, 21 Nye Thomas, 22 Sam James, 23 Tom Roebuck.

Referee: Sara Cox.