Former Saracens flanker Andy Saull is delighted with his move to Newcastle Falcons and says he's loving life so far up North.

Saull, 24, struggled to establish himself in the first-team at Saracens last season and signed for Dean Richards' side in April.

"I love it up here," Saull told the Falcons website. "It seems like a really friendly city. You jump in a cab and the driver tells you his life story.

"Everyone is so happy to take time and chat to you, and I have already made a lot of good mates outside of rugby in the few weeks I have been here.”

Saull joined former Men in Black players Adam Powell and Noah Cato at the Falcons, who were promoted back to the Aviva Premiership last season.

“I have signed up to move into a house next to my old Saracens teammate Adam Powell, so it looks like the Essex boys are going for safety in numbers,” said Saull.

He added: “We are hoping to rival the Scottish clan when it comes to foreigners in Geordieland, but unfortunately they have more bodies than us at the moment."

Saull signed for the Falcons before Richards' team secured promotion and the former Sarries man says he was nervously keeping tabs on the Championship final against Bedford Blues via Twitter.

He said: “I was actually in a beach rugby tournament in Bermuda when the final was being played, and I was constantly checking Twitter to see what the score was in between our games.

“There were nervous moments throughout because all I could see were numbers, so I had no idea about the ebb and flow of the game in terms of who was dominating.

“A lot of my mates at Saracens were playing for Bedford, so I knew the quality they had and the ability to sting Newcastle.

"I had a couple of mates in the Falcons’ team in Noah Cato and Adam Powell, though, and according to them it was never in doubt.”