Falcons centre May kicked three penalties to give them early hope

Newcastle coach Steve Bates has refused to blame his side for the second-half collapse in their 10-9 European Challenge Cup group defeat by Brive.

Falcons led 9-0 at the break but struggled with the wind in the second half and Bates believes the margins between the two sides were very slim.

"We were a bit naive in the second half," he told BBC Radio Newcastle.

"Last week against Gloucester we just managed to nick it, but this week we we managed to lose it by a point."

The loss means they must win their final group game with Cetransa El Salvador, and rely on group leaders Brive to beat Parma in order to qualify from the group.

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