Hodgson played in the England Saxons' defeat against Ireland on Friday

London Irish scrum-half Paul Hodgson says any pressure they feel under at the moment is good for the team.

The Exiles are without a Premiership win since October and have slipped from top of the table to seventh place.

Hodgson told BBC Berkshire: "The pressure that we create is on each other, to make sure that we deliver the best possible performance.

"We're a squad that is very competitive throughout - in plenty of positions there's competition."

Hodgson played down the importance of this weekend's fixture against Newcastle.

"It's the next game and the next game's always the most important one for me," he said.

"Yes, in the big picture it's a game that we really, really want to win. We're trying to get as many things right between now and Saturday and hopefully things will come good.

"They have good individuals throughout their squad. It's a case of everyone trying to play to the best of their ability to overcome their opposite number and hopefully that'll be enough."

London Irish versus Newcastle kicks off at 1230 GMT on Saturday 12 February and is live on BBC Radio Berkshire.

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