Newcastle director of rugby Rob Andrew was full of praise for his side following their crucial 47-18 victory over Saracens.

Andrew's men overcame an early 13-0 deficit to run in seven tries and grab a maximum five-point haul, lifting the Falcons up to fifth place in the Zurich Premiership table.

It was an unlikely result given Saracens' domination for much of the first half but after Hall Charlton's 39th-minute touchdown, there was only one side in it as the visitors visibly wilted in the face of Newcastle's enterprising play.

"Some of our play in the second half was as good as I've seen all season," said Andrew.

"I wasn't pleased when we went 13-0 down so early on but we were in full control after our first try and we got what we deserved after half-time.

"That was one of our best performances all season. We've got the makings of a half-decent side - we play with pace and skill and we can cause sides a lot of problems."

Newcastle face London Irish on Wednesday in what is a crunch qualification match for next season's Heineken Cup, but Andrew revealed front-row shortages mean he could be struggling to field a side.

"We've got a massive game against London Irish - it's going to be a real climax to the league season.

"But we've now got major problems in the front row. Ian Peel pulled a hamstring yesterday so we've only got two props.

"We'll have to take someone on loan as an emergency. We can't actually field a team at the moment because we haven't got front row cover."

Saracens head coach Wayne Shelford, who takes over the Vicarage Road coaching reigns next week after agreeing a three-year deal, was not particularly impressed by either side.

Former Wallaby centre Tim Horan has headed Saracens' makeshift coaching team since the departure of Francois Pienaar.

Shelford will now fill that role in time for the club's last match of the season - at home to Bristol - in what could prove a crucial relegation decider.

"There's lots of work to be done at Saracens - there are plenty of things to work on," said the former All Black, whose new charges lie just five points above bottom-placed Leeds.

"It wasn't a great performance by us but take out Inga Tuigamala and Jonny Wilkinson and there wasn't much to choose between either side.

"We missed too many tackles, gave away too many turnovers and we're a bit shy in the tackle."