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Former Harlequins and England number eight Nick Easter has joined Newcastle Falcons as defence coach.

Easter, 41, returns to England after a period coaching with Natal Sharks in South Africa, having also previously been defence coach at Harlequins.

“It’s great to have the opportunity to coach back in the Premiership, especially working with a guy like Dean Richards and at a club like Newcastle,” he said.

Falcons won last season's Championship.

They were promoted from the second tier at the first attempt when the season was ended prematurely in April because of the coronavirus lockdown.

Easter made 281 appearances for Harlequins in a 12-year association with the club and was capped 54 times by England, including at three World Cups.

“I’ve a great relationship with (director of rugby) Dean having played under him at Harlequins,” Easter added.

"He’s doing great work at Newcastle with a couple of promotions and a top-four Premiership finish.

“It’s a club on the rise and I want to play my part in helping the growth of rugby in the north east.

“I’ve learned a lot from being involved in Super Rugby. I’ll now be looking to take that and grow it further at Newcastle.”