ONE of the district’s promising young rugby players has received a prestigious award.

Newcastle Falcons academy player Oscar Caudle received a rising star honour at the Sport Newcastle awards night.

Sport Newcastle honours outstanding athletes aged between 11 and 21, and the Hexham teenager was recognised for his ongoing development as a Newcastle Falcons academy player.

He was among 13 recipients of the rising star award, which was presented to him by the Lord Mayor of Newcastle, Coun. David Down.

Caudle also rubbed shoulders with former Newcastle United and England football captain Alan Shearer at the event.

Previous winners of the prestigious award include England legend Jonny Wilkinson, and present day Newcastle Falcons flanker Callum Chick, who is from Ponteland.

A former pupil at Hexham’s Queen Elizabeth High School, Caudle (18) has been at Newcastle Falcons academy for the past four years.

He made his debut for the Falcons’ U18 team against Wasps in January 2018, when he fulfilled his dream of playing at Kingston Park.

Caudle, who is currently in the sixth form at Gosforth Academy in Newcastle, previously played for Tynedale Rugby Club.

He was part of the Tynedale Colts squad which reached the final of the National Colts Cup last May.

Despite losing to Maidenhead at the Sixfields Stadium, the home of Premiership side Worcester Warriors, reaching the national final was a considerable achievement.

As a result, the Colts were named youth team of the year at last December’s Sport Tynedale Awards.