Newcastle Falcons have made ten changes to their team for Sunday’s return to Gallagher Premiership action, when they travel to Bristol Bears.

The 3pm kick-off at Ashton Gate sees Brett Connon (pictured) and Sam Stuart forming the half-back partnership, with captain Callum Chick and hooker Jamie Blamire in from the start.

Elliott Obatoyinbo makes his comeback after missing the last three months with a knee injury, with loose-head prop Adam Brocklebank back following surgery.

Centre Max Clark makes his Premiership bow for the Falcons after debuting from the bench in last weekend’s European clash with Montpellier, while fit-again prop Luan de Bruin is named among the replacements.

England Under-20s full-back Ben Redshaw is ruled out by the ankle injury picked up last weekend against Montpellier, while flanker Tom Gordon will be out for the next few months due to ankle and shoulder problems.

Welcoming the return to Gallagher Premiership action after a fortnight in the EPCR Challenge Cup, director of rugby Steve Diamond said: “The league has always been our priority, so in that sense nothing has changed and everyone has always had clarity on it.

“We’ve played some of our younger guys in Europe over the past fortnight, and despite not winning the games I thought we got a lot out of them. A number of lads gained valuable experience and have given me some serious decisions to make over selection, but of course we’re disappointed not to have progressed in the competition.

“We’ve won three from three in the Prem Cup and that’s been a really useful tournament for us, but the Premiership is where we really want to improve our fortunes. We had a couple of good home wins over Exeter and Saracens, and that’s what we need more of.

“Bristol away on Sunday will be tough because they’re a good team who are capable of accumulating big points in games, so we need to frustrate them and be competitive at the breakdown. Bristol are a potent running side who keep the ball on the field. They don’t kick it off much, so we’ve got to be able to defend multi-phase and hopefully frustrate them into kicking the thing.”

Insisting that last season’s heavy loss at Ashton Gate will have no bearing on Sunday’s preparation, the Falcons boss said: “It was a long time ago now and we’ve played them at home since then, so I’m not sure it’s really relevant in terms of providing motivation for the lads.

“We’ve got enough reasons to want to win without bringing that into it, and I believe we’re a better defensive outfit now then we were then. Actions speak louder than words, of course, so it’s pointless me sitting here saying it. We’ve got to go down there and deliver.”

With Max Pepper starting on the right wing in the week that Adam Radwan said goodbye to Newcastle Falcons, Diamond explained: “We’re not doing this to save money or make some cash on the transfer fee. Those funds will be reinvested elsewhere to improve the squad in other positions when we strengthen in the summer.

“I’m lucky to have some great options on the wing to come in and take the shirt, and Max is the next cab off the rank. He reminds me of Ben Foden with his ability to play scrum-half as well as out on the wing, and he’s a dangerous runner. He’s got a great opportunity now to stake his claim, and if I didn’t think he was good enough then he wouldn’t be in there.”

Newcastle Falcons v Bristol Bears (Sunday, 3pm, Ashton Gate, live on Discovery+)

15 Elliott Obatoyinbo, 14 Max Pepper, 13 Alex Hearle, 12 Max Clark, 11 Ben Stevenson, 10 Brett Connon, 9 Sam Stuart; 1 Adam Brocklebank, 2 Jamie Blamire, 3 Murray McCallum, 4 Sebastian de Chaves, 5 Kiran McDonald, 6 Philip van der Walt, 7 Freddie Lockwood, 8 Callum Chick (captain).

Replacements: 16 Ollie Fletcher, 17 Micky Rewcastle, 18 Luan de Bruin, 19 John Hawkins, 20 Ollie Leatherbarrow, 21 Joe Davis, 22 Kieran Wilkinson, 23 Oli Spencer.

Not available for selection: Sammy Arnold, Eduardo Bello, Louis Brown, Tim Cardall, Connor Doherty, Tom Gordon, Nathan Grenwood, Cameron Hutchison, John Kelly, Cameron Neild, Richard Palframan, Reuben Parsons, Ben Redshaw.

Bristol Bears: 15 Rich Lane, 14 Noah Heward, 13 Joe Jenkins, 12 Benhard Janse van Rensburg, 11 Kalaveti Ravouvou, 10 Harry Byrne, 9 Kieran Marmion; 1 Yann Thomas, 2 Gabriel Oghre, 3 Max Lahiff, 4 James Dun, 5 Joe Owen, 6 Santiago Grondona, 7 Fitz Harding (captain), 8 Viliame Mata.

Replacements: 16 Will Capon, 17 Jake Woolmore, 18 George Kloska, 19 Steven Luatua, 20 Jake Heenan, 21 Sam Wolstenholme, 22 Benjamin Elizalde, 23 Deago Bailey.

Referee: Craig Maxwell-Keys.