‘We need to show more savvy’ says Laycock
The Falcons booked their quarter-final spot when an Adam Radwan hat-trick took them to a 26-19 triumph over Leicester Tigers, having earlier been beaten 31-10 by pre-tournament favourites Wasps.
That means they will now face Worcester Warriors in the last eight, with the winner meeting Gloucester or Harlequins in the Cup semi-finals.
“It was a mixed bag of a night and we know we have to improve a lot if we want to go further,” said Laycock, the first teams skills coach and academy manager.
“We’re pleased in the sense that we got through to the main competition, but the way we did it was not how we wanted to.
“We were probably the masters of our downfall in the Wasps game with some indiscipline around the contact area, and you get exposed in sevens if you do that.
“We came in and talked about that before the Leicester game, and we went into that match in good spirits.
“Giving Leicester a 12-0 got their hopes up, and disruptions for head injury assessments and other injuries damaged our flow a little bit. The pleasing thing was how we came back from that during the second half, and we played some fantastic rugby in difficult conditions.”
Looking forward to day two of a competition which is shown live on BT Sport from 3pm, Laycock said: “The expectation is that we are going to have another wet afternoon, and in sevens that really is a game-changer.
“We need to adapt our game and there may be some selection changes, but we’ll have a look at it and be smart in the changes we make.”
Prominent for the Falcons with two tries against Wasps and a hat-trick against Leicester Tigers was winger Adam Radwan (pictured), with Laycock delighted for the teenager.
He said: “We’re all really pleased for Radders because he has an absolutely fantastic attitude, and he really deserves those plaudits from tonight.
“It was not just him, though, and we did have some good combinations. Cameron Cowell pulled the strings, Glen Young got through a huge amount of work down the middle and the lads as a whole fronted up. They showed the effort but we just need to be a bit more savvy in what we do.”
