Dave Walder: Newcastle Falcons director of rugby leaves position less than a year after taking charge

Dave Walder was previously head coach of Newcastle Falcons for five years before taking charge when Dean Richards left at the end of the 2021-22 season

Newcastle Falcons director of rugby Dave Walder has left his position at the club less than a year after he succeeded former boss Dean Richards.

Although he will not officially depart until the end of the season, Walder will immediately step aside to allow Mark Laycock to take on the role.

Walder, 44, formerly played for the Falcons before returning as a coach.

He took charge of the club after Richards stepped down in May 2022 following 10 years at Kingston Park.

His departure comes with Falcons second-from-bottom of the Premiership, only above bottom side Bath because they have won more games.

However, Newcastle are not under threat of relegation after both Worcester and Wasps went into administration last year and were relegated.

"Realistically we haven't been where we want to be for a few years now and as a club we recognise the need to make changes to our approach to achieve our goals," chairman Matt Thompson told the club website.

"Transitional periods like this are never easy, and unfortunately we are going to lose some people along the way."

Walder's playing career with Falcons included the Powergen Cup wins of 2001 and 2004, and regular elite-level rugby, and his return as coach in 2014 also had a galvanising effect.

He helped shape an attacking style on the club's newly-installed synthetic pitch as backs and attack coach, before stepping up to head coach and helping secure Heineken Cup rugby for the first time in 13 years and a Premiership play-off place at the end of the 2017-18 season.

The extra workload took its toll as Falcons were relegated the following year but bounced back at the first attempt.

However, since returning to the top flight, the Premiership's most northerly club has failed to challenge for the top-half spots, although Walder has helped develop talent such as wing Adam Radwan and hooker Jamie Blamire during that time.

Off the field, this season has also seen the mid-season departures of hooker George McGuigan and prop Trevor Davison to Gloucester and Northampton respectively.

"A lot has happened, particularly this year, both across the sport and on and off the field at the club, and we need a bit of a reset across the board," Thompson added.

"Our aim is to be a sustainable club that is here for years to come and in line with that it's important that we invest in the right areas, in the right way at the right time.

"We want to entertain our supporters and play an exciting brand of rugby, which also means having the right players and coaching personnel in place to take us forward, and that is part of our ongoing recruitment strategy."