Warriors

7 Pennell. Toiled hard in defence. Vital try-saving tackle on Watson as Warriors were under the pump in the closing 10 minutes.

8 Heem. Put in a tireless shift on his return to starting duty, making a massive 68 metres with ball in hand. Unlucky to be denied an early try by Sinoti. Lovely feed inside for Olivier’s try.

9 OLIVIER. The veteran Springbok centre had a fine game all-round, teeing up what should have been a first-half try for Humphreys and finishing a brilliant move.

7 Te’o. Warriors’ first British and Irish Lion endured a frustrating night, making 65m and challenging the gain-line but meeting a wall of defenders.

6 Humphreys. Butchered a gimme of a try-scoring opportunity in the fist half but part-redeemed himself with the blistering break that led to Olivier’s try.

8 Mills. Stand-in skipper got the game by the scruff of the neck in the opening stages, orchestrating on the front foot and probing with his kicks, not least with the deft chip that should have led to a try for Humphreys. Tackled well in defence too.

7 Hougaard. Provided silver-platter service for Mills as Warriors dominated the opening half-hour. Had a tough time containing his livelier opposite number, though - Takalua bursting over for the late try that provided his match-winning conversion.

6 Ruskin. Not the best of nights for the Georgian. Gave away scrum penalties and also seemed to get into trouble with referee Garner for some verbals.

7 Taufete’e. The Californian hooker carried the ball well in the loose and had a strong game at scrum-time.

7 Alo. Put in a decent shift before making may for Gareth Milasinovich in the 52nd minute.

6 Vui. Played well in defence and in the loose but not the best of nights for the Warriors at line-out time.

6 Spencer. Tackled well and got around the park but line-out was far from perfect. Yellow carded for pulling down a Falcons maul.

8 Potgieter. A Warrior all round - good in defence and in the loose, making 21m. Came back on after a streaming head wound just before the break.

7 Lewis. Covered a lot of ground and worked hard in defence before making way for Fa'osiliva at the interval.

8 Mama. Prominent in the loose, setting the tone with a big burst through the middle early on. Made 38m with ball in hand.

Replacements: Potgieter (Fa'osiliva, 35-40), Lewis (Fa'osiliva (h-t), Alo (Milasinovich, 52), Taufete’e (Singleton, 67), Ruskin (Bower, 70), Olivier (Lamb, 76). Not used: Barry, Baldwin, Vuna.

Referee: Greg Garner (RFU).

Yellow cards: Warriors: Spencer, 60 min; Newcastle: Welch, 52 min.

Attendance: 7,395.

Newcastle: Watson; Geneva, C Harris, Socio Sinoti; Hodgson (Willis, 68), Takulua; Vickers, Lawson (Cooper, 58), Welsh, Green, Robinson (Witty, 63), Wilson, Welch, Chick (Fonua, 58). Not used: B Harris, Rogers, Egerton, Tait.