| The Falcons will be aiming to repeat their victory over the men from the East Midlands in last season’s corresponding fixture, and Fletcher has praised the supporters who cheered his team on over the festive period as champions Sale Sharks were defeated in the north-east.
“The atmosphere on Boxing Day was superb, and the players all got a massive lift from the crowd,” said Fletcher.
“Our fans have played a huge part in making Kingston Park a difficult place to come this season, and their support has been tremendous in helping us win six or our last seven home games.
“The crowd on Boxing Day was a vital ingredient in helping steer us home against the champions, and the message to all our supporters is that we hugely value your backing. We look forward to seeing you on Sunday and continuing our run of home form.”
Falcons No.8 Russell Winter echoed Fletcher’s sentiments, stating: “We have a great crowd which follows us round the country, and they’re fantastic to the players.
“Everybody supports us, and to be on our home field with the crowd behind us really seems to lift the guys. I think we’ve won six of our last seven games at home, so that just goes to show we’re not an easy team to beat up here.
“We’re so far north that we need to use that to our advantage. When we have an away game we can sit on a bus for seven hours and the trips can take two or three days, so we know that when we play at home the opposition are going through the same sort of journey. It definitely makes a difference, and that’s something we can exploit.”
Falcons fans without a ticket yet for Sunday’s game still have time to book by calling 0871 226 60 60, or popping to Kingston park during office hours and match day.
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