Bates was disappointed with the first-half display against Saracens

Newcastle Falcons head coach Steve Bates has warned his players they must quickly erase the memory of Sunday's 44-14 defeat by Saracens.

Bristol arrive on Tyneside this Friday and Bates has called for his players to show their mettle when they face the West Country strugglers.

"We've just had a chat in the changing room and we're all disappointed," he told BBC Radio Newcastle.

"We can't afford to dwell and we've got to get back up on our feet for Friday."

Saracens were Heineken Cup semi-finalists last season and with the impressive signings of Wales number eight Michael Owen and England lock Steve Borthwick now figuring in their side, could mount a surprise bid for the championship.

In comparison Falcons lost the experience of Toby Flood and Mathew Tait and Bates conceded that the club are currently running behind teams such as Saracens in terms of their development as a squad.

"We believe we're going in the right direction but it's going to be a building process that's going to take us a little bit of time," he said.

"We haven't got the side that Saracens have got and they've spent a lot more money creating that base of player.

"We've got to learn lessons from this, keep very positive because it's only the third game, assess where we've gone wrong and do something about it."