Bristol Bears became just the fourth side sitting top of the Gallagher Premiership to be beaten by the bottom side with a 30-15 defeat to Newcastle Falcons on Friday night.
Bristol's unbeaten start to the league season came to an end at Kingston Park as repeated errors saw any momentum they had in the game dissipate.
Man of the match Mateo Carreras – one of three Argentines coming into the Falcons’ starting XV, along with Matias Orlando and debutant Matias Moroni – scored the first and last of the hosts’ four tries with hooker George McGuigan scoring his fifth of the season and Connor Collett also on the scoresheet. Tian Schoeman kicked 10 points for the home side on his full debut having joined from Bath in the summer, while Henry Purdy and Richard Lane went over for Bristol and AJ MacGinty booted five points.
