Goode night for Brive
Andy Goode celebrated his England recall with a crucial conversion that gave Brive a 10-9 victory over Newcastle.
Last Updated: 18/01/09 12:18am
Andy Goode celebrated his England recall with a crucial conversion that gave Brive a 10-9 victory over Newcastle in the European Challenge Cup.
The former Leicester fly-half showed his value to the French side by slotting over a late kick in tough conditions at Kingston Park.
Norman Ligairi had crossed in the 73rd-minute to give the visitors hope after they had found themselves second best for much of the contest.
Up until then Newcastle had looked to have done enough to seal a confidence-building win thanks to three penalties from Tom May.
The stand-in fly half slotted over a trio of chances in the first half as the Guinness Premiership strugglers were allowed to forget about their domestic troubles.
However, Brive battled back to stun their hosts and clinch a first ever win on English soil.
Goode back
Goode, called up to train with the England squad in Portugal by former Tigers team-mate Martin Johnson, got them on the board with a penalty attempt two minutes after the break.
The 28-year-old then proved to be the match-winner, converting Ligairi's effort after the winger had stepped by Tim Visser to reach the line.
The defeat leaves Newcastle third in the pool and they must now beat Cetransa El Salvador in Spain next week if they are to qualify for the quarter-finals as one of the best runners-up.
Brive, who sit on top heading into the final round of fixtures, host Overmach Parma on Thursday night to decide who will finish as group winners.
