Dean Richards, the former Director of Rugby at the Aviva Premiership side Harlequins Football Club has been assigned the same role with another Aviva Premiership side, the Newcastle Falcons, a position that he will take up from the start of the new season.

But the question remains is whether Richards will have to take charge of the side when it will no longer be in the Premiership because as things stand at the moment, they are the favorites to go down from the top league of English rugby.

New Newcastle Falcons head coach, Gary Gold has insisted that he is in the long game with the Falcons and that relegation this season would not spell the end of the Newcastle club.

Neighbours West Hartlepool are one of many great Northern sides to have fallen from Rugby’s top table to lower league obscurity and Gold is determined that the Falcons will not follow the likes of West, Liverpool St Helens and Orrell.

Newcastle Falcon’s parted company with Coach Alan Tait this week and the instant response on the pitch has already shown promise.

The Falcons main concern for the remainder of this season will be to secure Premiership survival but their display against Petarca Padova in the Challenge Cup will give a glimmer of hope to this seemingly impossible chance.

Newcastle has appointed a new director of rugby and they have turned to Gary Gold of South Africa as Alan Tait was relieved of his directorial responsibilities.

Also Mike Ford, the former defence coach of England has also joined the rugby club’s backroom staff as the team faces relegation.

Premiership strugglers Newcastle did just about enough to wrap up victory against Toulon in the opening matches of the weekend.

Jonny Wilkinson returned to Kingston Park, but spent the whole 80 minutes sat on the substitute’s bench as an unused substitute. The game was never going to be a free flowing, high scoring encounter at a cold windy Kingston Park and so it proved to be. Newcastle indeed ran out winners in a tight encounter. Two penalties in three minutes from Jimmy Gopperth proved enough for the Falcons to run out victorious by six points to three.

Newcastle Falcons have signed Ashley Wells in order to strengthen their team for future successes. The 25-year-old joins Alan Tait's side from South African provincial side Wildeklawer Griquas.

He was included in the Stormers 2010 Super 14 training squad, and helped the Griquas to the semi-finals of the Vodacom Cup last season.

Wells is the Falcons' ninth new arrival in a summer that has also seen six players leave Kingston Park.

Newcastle has signed youngster Will Chudley who has been extremely promising in recent months. The 23-year-old helped the Blues reach the Championship play-offs and was in the side that lost the British & Irish Cup final to Bristol.

"I've been looking for a young nine, he's quick, he's got a great service," coach Alan Tait told BBC Newcastle.

"He's a young man who wants a real go at Premiership rugby."

Tait added: "When Bedford played Worcester [in the play-off semi-final], I thought he was man-of-the-match and that made my mind up."

Newcastle defeated Leeds in the most demoralising of fashions in the battle of the bottom two clubs at Headingley.

Falcons made the perfect start after seven minutes with Ally Hogg's try before Jimmy Gopperth added two penalties shortly before the break.

Newcastle extended their lead with two more Gopperth kicks to make it 17-0.

Leeds' consistent errors and Falcons' stern defending restricted the hosts to Scott Freer's 65th-minute try before Jeremy Manning sealed the victory.

Newcastle Falcons lock Andrew van der Heijden is about to be handed his debut for his new club. The New Zealand second-rower, 26, has been forced to wait for his chance after picking up the injury in his last game for Auckland last November.

"I've been raring to go for two months and it's finally come along," Van der Heijden told BBC Newcastle.

"I'm fully fit, it's always tough watching from the bench."

Mark Wilson extended his contract with the Newcastle Falcons. The 21-year-old former Kendal man, who signed an initial one-year contract last summer, has made 14 appearances for the Falcons this season.

Wilson told the club website: "I'm delighted to have signed the contract.

"I want to cement my place in the team now and crack on from there. I need to keep on doing what I'm doing and keep playing well."