Newcastle Falcons' Steve Diamond hopes to make Kingston Park a fortress as he takes coaching reins

  • Steve Diamond speaks to ITV Tyne Tees Sports Correspondent Simon O'Rourke

Steve Diamond has vowed to correct Newcastle Falcons' home form after being appointed consultant director of rugby at Kingston Park.

Falcons have endured a terrible Premiership campaign so far, losing all 12 of their matches leaving the club languishing 18 points adrift at the bottom of the league.

The club's form saw head coach Alex Codling step away from daily duties and Diamond now takes charge after Micky Ward served as interim against Perpignan and Northampton.

The 54-year-old has admitted there is little he can do to prevent the club from slipping into the relegation play-off at the end of the season but has made improving the club's home form his top priority.

Steve Diamond has taken over coaching duties from Alex Codling. Credit: PA

"There's not much I can do if I am perfectly honest," he told ITV Tyne Tees when asked about the Falcons' league position. "For me, it is about if I can make the squad competitive. We'd have to win four or five games to get off the bottom so that's probably unlikely.

"But if you look at the medium-term goal of restructuring the squad, the management team and getting success next season that is probably further down the line.

"Getting the consistency and the approach of how we do things.

"Newcastle have a tradition of not losing many games up here and that seems to have gone by the wayside. So that's the first job in hand to be good at home."

The Falcons have struggled in the Premiership this season. Credit: PA

Diamond will have eight weeks to work with his new charges before their next fixture as the Premiership freezes for the Six Nations and he intends to put the time to good use.

"The opportunity is untapped at the minute," he said. "We have agreed to put a plan in place that would hopefully see some growth on the performance side.

"We have got a lot of time to put things right. I have eight weeks to have a good look at who wants to be here and who doesn't."

Once he has been able to settle Falcons' poor form Diamond has set his sights high - seeking to get the club back into Europe. To do that he hopes to utilise the youth setups across the north to build a team capable of getting back into the top six.

Steve Diamond has set his long-term aim as getting Falcons back into the top six. Credit: PA

"The amount of kids who come through these pathways is incredible and we want to build the team around that," he explained. "A young northern team who has to have some senior help from abroad, ie four or five players who come in, but we can't go over budget.

"My street cred and the reason why I get jobs like this comes from the fact that I am good at doing that.

"To get into Europe would be like winning the competition and I think anyone out there would agree with me. That's going to be the target."

In the meantime, the Diamond's focus is firmly on staying in the Premiership and he is extremely confident his team will do it.

"If there is a relegation play-off, we will win it," he said. "Without a doubt."

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