Tom Christie to captain rebuilt Newcastle Red Bulls into new Prem season

Tom Christie will lead Newcastle Red Bulls into the new Prem season, starting with a Friday night trip to champions Northampton Saints on 26 September.

The 28-year-old New Zealander takes over as captain from hooker George McGuigan, the front-row forward who throws in at the lineout. Christie plays flanker, the hard-running, hard-tackling role on the side of the scrum, and will wear the armband throughout the 2026-27 campaign, according to the club's announcement on 1 September BBC Sport.

It is a big job. Newcastle finished bottom of the Prem, England's top division of rugby union, for the past four seasons. Head coach Dan McFarland now has 25 new players to blend for this campaign.

Christie was part of the first wave. He joined last summer after the Red Bull takeover, with the ownership deal confirmed just over a month before the start of last season. He previously played for the Crusaders in Super Rugby, the southern hemisphere club competition, and for Canterbury in New Zealand's provincial championship.

He made a fast start in England. Christie scored six tries in 19 games in his first season for Newcastle, form that helped earn him the captaincy FloRugby.

Christie told BBC Sport the squad is refusing to set a ceiling: "We're not going to put any limits on where we think we'll get to or where we hope to get to, because we'd be selling ourselves short."

Then he added: "Let's just play and see where that takes us."

Preparation has been different this year. Newcastle spent a week in Salzburg last month visiting Red Bull's global headquarters. Then came a first sign of cohesion on the pitch, a 36-24 win over Leicester Tigers in the Prem Rugby Cup in the team's first competitive outing together.

For fans, this means a fresh test of that togetherness. Saints away is the hardest start in the league. A new captain, a new-look squad and a settled champion. Play hard, play loose, and see where it goes.