Teams who end a season badly invariably tend to start the next campaign slowly too. Watford are a case in point, with zero points from three games, picking up where they left off last spring. It leaves Javi Gracia under even greater pressure than Newcastle’s Steve Bruce. Last Sunday’s win at Newcastle brightened Bruce’s horizon appreciably but he is well aware that anything but victory will see the storm clouds descending on Tyneside once again. Louise Taylor
Saturday 3pm
Venue St James’ Park
Last season Newcastle 1 Watford 0
Referee Graham Scott
This season G1 Y0 R0 0 cards/game
Odds H 13-8 A 2-1 D 23-10
NEWCASTLE
Subs from Darlow, Krafth, Fernández, Clark, Shelvey, Ki, Muto, M Longstaff
Doubtful Almirón (ankle), Krafth (thigh), Willems (hamstring)
Injured Carroll (ankle, 14 Sep), Yedlin (groin, 14 Sep), Saint-Maximin (hamstring, Oct), Ritchie (ankle, Nov), Gayle (Calf, unknown), Lejeuene (knee, unknown)
Suspended None
Discipline Y6 R0
Form LLW
Leading scorers Joelinton, Shelvey 1
WATFORD
Subs from Gomes, Janmaat, Dawson, Prödl, Welbeck, Masina, Quina, Chalobah, Sema, Cleverley, Success, Dahlberg, Mariappa, Dele-Bashiru, Foulquier, Hughes, Peñaranda
Doubtful None
Injured Deeney (knee, unknown)
Suspended None
Discipline Y4 R0
Form LLL
Leading scorer Gray 1
