Falcons Forces to launch this Saturday
With the club’s next home match taking place on Armistice Day, Newcastle Falcons’ Anglo-Welsh Cup fixture against Cardiff Blues will see the launch of a new initiative to demonstrate the club’s support of current and former services personnel.
Initially covering three strands, Falcons Forces will be ran by the Falcons Community Foundation and will work alongside Forward Assist, Help 4 Heroes, Royal British Legion, Sporting Force and SSAFA.
As part of the new initiative, tickets for four selected matches will be offered to current serving personnel via Tickets 4 Troops, while 2018’s Move Like a Pro programme at Kingston Park Stadium will have a specific cohort tailored for veterans.
Assisted by key veteran charities, the third strand will develop a programme to support veterans returning to training or employment.
The launch of the programme on November 11 will see a wide range of activity at the ground, starting at 13:30 with a curtain-raiser game between Infantry North and Artillery North on the main pitch.
This will be followed by the traditional mark of respect of a two minutes silence ahead of the 5pm kick-off, which will be led by the Royal Fusiliers and Tyne Met College Uniformed Services.
Half time will see a pitch walk by the two regimental teams from the day’s first fixture, along with 50 veterans who will be guests of the club on the day.
In addition to the on-field events the club shop will be selling a limited edition polo shirt featuring the club logo alongside the British Legion Poppy. Priced at £20 and on sale in store on the day only, £5 from each polo will be donated directly to the Poppy Appeal.
Speaking about the new programme, Darren Greco of the Falcons Community Foundation said. “Falcons Forces is a new and exciting initiative that the Falcons Community Foundation are launching. It’s great that we can use the brand, facilities and infra-structure here at Kingston Park to support our armed-forces.
“We are looking forward to working closely with a number of partner organisations to support veterans across the region as well as developing closer links to our serving forces members.”
As part of the launch, Alex Tait paid a visit to HMS Calliope at Gateshead Quays. See how he got on **[here][1]** via Falcons TV
[1]: https://youtu.be/6uttJHZ7tX4
