Falcons boss hits back at claims that Mateo Carreras has signed French deal

Newcastle head coach Alex Codling has dismissed claims from France that Mateo Carreras, the Argentine wing, has signed a three year deal to join Bayonne next season.

Codling is adamant negotiations to keep Carreras, who scored a hat-trick for the Pumas in their World Cup win over Japan, are still ongoing as he battles to keep the club’s group of influential Argentine players together.

Newcastle have lost all four Premiership matches this season and now face the daunting challenge posed by Saracens, the reigning champions, at Kingston Park on Sunday. Codling, unlike previous head coach Dave Walder, is involved in the contract negotiations for current and new players and said: “It is not true, as it stands, that he has signed a three year deal with a French club. There is a lot of speculation around Mateo which is understandable because he is a world class player.

“The situation is very fluid and we would like to keep him but he is in high demand and we will see what happens in the next couple of weeks. I am involved in contract discussions and, as has been well documented, the club has cut its cloth accordingly and it does make it a challenge but that’s life. It is case of bringing the young players through and retaining the players we want while brining in some from outside.

“We have started to look at the players we would like to keep here and build the team around. Newcastle is a club in transition and we need stability. We have had a new gym put in for the first time in 15 years and the investment is there, but we don’t have the level that other clubs do and we have to make sure we make everything work to its full capabilities.”

Codling is determined to change the way Falcons attack and is frustrated by the fact the team created chances in all four games and didn’t taken enough to get the win. He added: “When you have the weather up here and the group of players they had previously – very big - they played a certain way. There has been a kicking game, heavy focus on the maul and scrum and probably not moving the ball as much. The game is changing and we don’t have the physical profile we previously did. I want to get the ball into our back three players hands more and play the space.

“That will take time and we are zero after four and we don’t shy away from that and Saracens are a challenge we should relish. They are a champion team and we will rip into them.”