Ex-All Black Vaea Fifita set for Wasps debut

Round Two of the Premiership is set for kick-off as six games take place, including Wasps’ opening match of the season, against Bristol Bears on Saturday.

Check on all the team news for the weekend, including Friday’s meeting between Gloucester and Leicester Tigers, while we also predict the results of the games.

Friday

Gloucester v Leicester Tigers

Form: Gloucester Rugby have won their last three Gallagher Premiership Rugby matches played at Kingsholm excluding the declared defeat against Bath in June. Gloucester were defeated 20-34 at Northampton on Saturday and have not begun a campaign with a pair of defeats since 2013/14. Leicester Tigers’ only defeat in their last five Premiership Rugby encounters was 23-26 at home to Bristol in Round 21 last year. The Tigers have won their last two away games in the tournament at Worcester and at Wasps and have not won three in succession on their travels since May 2018. Gloucester won both fixtures when the two sides met last season, whilst Leicester’s only loss in their last five clashes with the Cherry and Whites was 46-30 at Kingsholm in August 2020.

Prediction: Leicester Tigers by 8

The teams:

Gloucester: 15 Kyle Moyle, 14 Tom Seabrook, 13 Billy Twelvetrees, 12 Mark Atkinson, 11 Ollie Thorley, 10 Lloyd Evans, 9 Ben Meehan, 8 Ruan Ackermann, 7 Lewis Ludlow (c), 6 Ben Morgan, 5 Andrew Davidson, 4 Ed Slater, 3 Fraser Balmain, 2 Jack Singleton, 1 Harry Elrington
Replacements: 16 Henry Walker, 17 Jamal Ford-Robinson, 18 Kirill Gotovtsev, 19 Freddie Clarke, 20 Wian Conradie, 21 Jack Clement, 22 Stephen Varney, 23 Adam Hastings

Leicester Tigers: 15 Freddie Steward, 14 Harry Potter, 13 Matt Scott, 12 Dan Kelly, 11 Nemani Nadolo, 10 George Ford, 9 Jack van Poortvliet, 8 Hanro Liebenberg, 7 Tommy Reffell, 6 George Martin, 5 Eli Snyman, 4 Harry Wells, 3 Dan Cole, 2 Nic Dolly, 1 Ellis Genge (c)
Replacements: 16 Tom Cowan-Dickie, 17 Francois van Wyk, 18 Joe Heyes, 19 Calum Green, 20 Ollie Chessum, 21 Ben Youngs, 22 Freddie Burns, 23 Guy Porter

Venue: Kingsholm
Kick-off: 19:45 BST (18:45 GMT)
Referee: Tom Foley
Assistant Referees: Anthony Woodthorpe, Paul Dix
TMO: Wayne Barnes

Saturday

Bath v Newcastle Falcons

Form: Bath Rugby have won only one of their last six Gallagher Premiership Rugby matches (excluding the declared victory against Gloucester in June): 30-24 at home to Northampton in Round 22. Bath lost six of their home games played at the Rec in Premiership Rugby last season. Newcastle Falcons’ only win in the last four rounds of Gallagher Premiership Rugby was 24-14 at home to Worcester on 5 June. The Falcons were victorious only twice on their travels in Premiership Rugby last season and they were in their opening two away trips to Bath and to Wasps. Last season both fixtures between the two clubs were won by the away side on the day whilst Bath are searching for successive victories over the Falcons for the first time since 2016.

Prediction: Bath by 7

The teams:

Bath: 15 Tom de Glanville, 14 Semesa Rokoduguni, 13 Jonathan Joseph, 12 Max Ojomoh, 11 Will Muir, 10 Orlando Bailey, 9 Ollie Fox, 8 Josh Bayliss, 7 Sam Underhill, 6 Miles Reid, 5 Charlie Ewels (c), 4, Mike Williams, 3 Johannes Jonker, 2 Tom Dunn, 1 Juan Schoeman
Replacements: 16 Jacques du Toit, 17 Beno Obano, 18 D’Arcy Rae, 19 Tom Ellis, 20 Jaco Coetzee, 21 Max Green, 22 Will Butt, 23 Max Clark

Newcastle Falcons: 15 Tom Penny, 14 Adam Radwan, 13 Ben Stevenson, 12 Pete Lucock, 11 Iwan Stephens, 10 Will Haydon-Wood, 9 Louis Schreuder, 8 Carl Fearns, 7 Will Welch (c), 6 Philip van der Walt, 5 Sean Robinson, 4 Greg Peterson, 3 Richard Palframan, 2 George McGuigan, 1 Adam Brocklebank
Replacements: 16 Jamie Blamire, 17 Kyle Cooper, 18 Mark Tampin, 19 Marco Fuser, 20 Gary Graham, 21 Cameron Nordli-Kelemeti, 22 Brett Connon, 23 George Wacokecoke

Venue: Recreation Ground
Kick-off: 15:00 BST (14:00 GMT)
Referee: Craig Maxwell-Keys
Assistant Referees: Dean Richards, John Meredith
TMO: David Rose

Exeter Chiefs v Northampton Saints

Form: Exeter Chiefs have lost their last two Gallagher Premiership Rugby matches, last year’s final to Harlequins and to Leicester in Round 1 and have not lost three in succession in the tournament since October 2020. The Chiefs have won their last seven home games at Sandy Park in Premiership Rugby since Northampton beat them there by a solitary point in February. Northampton Saints beat Gloucester 34-20 at home in Round 1 but have lost on their last two away trips in Premiership Rugby to Newcastle and to Bath. Exeter have lost only one of their last six fixtures against the Saints in Premiership Rugby: 12-13 at Sandy Park in February – Northampton’s first victory at the venue since 2014.

Prediction: Exeter Chiefs by 10

The teams:

Exeter Chiefs: 15 Josh Hodge, 14 Facundo Cordero, 13 Henry Slade, 12 Ollie Devoto, 11 Tom O’Flaherty, 10 Joe Simmonds, 9 Jack Maunder, 8 Rus Tuima, 7 Don Armand, 6 Jannes Kirsten, 5 Sean Lonsdale, 4 Will Witty, 3 Harry Williams, 2 Jack Yeandle (c), 1 Alec Hepburn
Replacements: 16 Jack Innard, 17 Ben Moon, 18 Josh Iosefa-Scott, 19 Ryan McCauley, 20 Christ Tshiunza, 21 Sam Hidalgo-Clyne, 22 Harvey Skinner, 23 Ian Whitten

Northampton Saints: 15 George Furbank, 14 Ollie Sleightholme, 13 Matt Proctor, 12 Fraser Dingwall, 11 Tom Collins, 10 James Grayson, 9 Alex Mitchell, 8 Teimana Harrison, 7 Lewis Ludlam (c), 6 Tom Wood, 5 Api Ratuniyarawa, 4 David Ribbans, 3 Ehren Painter, 2 Sam Matavesi, 1 Alex Waller
Replacements: 16 James Fish, 17 Nick Auterac, 18 Paul Hill, 19 Alex Moon, 20 Juarno Augustus, 21 Frank Lomani, 22 Tom Litchfield, 23 Tommy Freeman

Venue: Sandy Park
Kick-off: 15:00 BST (14:00 GMT)
Referee: Christophe Ridley
Assistant Referees: George Selwood, Wayne Falla
TMO: Rowan Kitt

Harlequins v Worcester Warriors

Form: Sara Cox becomes the 91st official to take charge of a Gallagher Premiership Rugby match and should have been referee for Worcester v Gloucester on 12 June, but that one was cancelled. Harlequins have won their last four Gallagher Premiership Rugby matches and have not won five in succession in the tournament since March 2019. The Londoners have won eight Premiership Rugby matches in succession at the Twickenham Stoop, their best run at the venue in the competition since 2012. Worcester Warriors’ long wait for a Premiership victory in a match that was actually played ended with their 36-24 victory over London Irish on Saturday. The Warriors have not won back-to-back Premiership Rugby matches since November 2020 and have not won away from home in the tournament since a trip to London Irish in Round 20 of the 2019/20 campaign. Excluding unplayed games Worcester have won three of their last five encounters with Harlequins. They were defeated 26-50 at the Stoop in April but in season 2019/20 they won on both Premiership Rugby visits to the venue against Harlequins and London Irish.

Prediction: Harlequins by 12

The teams:

Harlequins: 15 Tyrone Green, 14 Louis Lynagh, 13 Joe Marchant, 12 Andre Esterhuizen, 11 Cadan Murley, 10 Tommy Allan, 9 Danny Care, 8 Alex Dombrandt (c), 7 Jack Kenningham, 6 Tom Lawday, 5 Dino Lamb, 4 Matt Symons, 3 Simon Kerrod, 2 Jack Walker, 1 Joe Marler
Replacements: 16 Sam Riley, 17 Fin Baxter, 18 Will Collier, 19 Hugh Tizard, 20 James Chisholm, 21 Scott Steele, 22 Huw Jones, 23 Luke Northmore

Worcester Warriors: 15 Jamie Shillcock, 14 Noah Heward, 13 Ollie Lawrence, 12 Francois Venter, 11 Perry Humphreys, 10 Owen Williams, 9 Willi Heinz (cc), 8 Matt Kvesic, 7 Sam Lewis, 6 Ted Hill (cc), 5 Justin Clegg, 4 Kyle Hatherell, 3 Christian Judge, 2 Scott Baldwin, 1 Ethan Waller
Replacements: 16 Niall Annett, 17 Marc Thomas, 18 Jack Owlett, 19 Matt Garvey, 20 Graham Kitchener, 21 Will Chudley, 22 Billy Searle, 23 Melani Nanai

Venue: Twickenham Stoop
Kick-off: 15:00 BST (14:00 GMT)
Referee: Sara Cox
Assistant Referees: Jack Makepeace, Rob Warburton
TMO: Stuart Terheege

Wasps v Bristol Bears

Form: Wasps begin their campaign after having a bye week in Round 1. Wasps’ last six Gallagher Premiership Rugby matches have been evenly split with three wins and three defeats. The West Midlanders have lost two of their last three matches at the Coventry Building Society Arena Bristol Bears have lost their last two Gallagher Premiership Rugby matches, both at Ashton Gate, against Harlequins in last year’s semi-final and against Saracens in Round 1 and have not lost three in succession since January 2020. The Bears have lost just once in their last ten away games in Premiership Rugby: 12-22 at Bath in Round 20. Bristol won their most recent encounter with Wasps 37-20 at Ashton Gate in March to end an eleven game losing streak to Wasps in Premiership Rugby. Bristol have won only once at the CBS Arena: 30-19 in the Premiership Rugby Cup in November 2018

Prediction: Bristol by 5

The teams:

Wasps: 15 Ali Crossdale, 14 Marcus Watson, 13 Malakai Fekitoa, 12 Michael Le Bourgeois, 11 Josh Bassett, 10 Jacob Umaga, 9 Dan Robson, 8 Tom Willis, 7 Gabriel Oghre, 6 Brad Shields (c), 5 Elliott Stooke, 4 Vaea Fifita, 3 Jeff Toomaga-Allen, 2 Tom Cruse, 1 Robin Hislop
Replacements: 16 Dan Frost, 17 Ben Harris, 18 Biyi Alo, 19 Tim Cardall, 20 Ben Morris, 21 Will Porter, 22 Jimmy Gopperth, 23 Zach Kibirige

Bristol Bears: 15 Charles Piutau, 14 Niyi Adeolokun, 13 Piers O’Conor, 12 Alapati Leiua, 11 Ioan Lloyd, 10 Callum Sheedy, 9 Andy Uren, 8 Nathan Hughes, 7 Dan Thomas, 6 Steven Luatua (c), 5 Chris Vui, 4 Dave Attwood, 3 Max Lahiff, 2 Harry Thacker, 1 Yann Thomas
Replacements: 16 Will Capon, 17 Jake Woolmore, 18 Jake Armstrong, 19 Ed Holmes, 20 Jake Heenan, 21 Harry Randall, 22 Sam Bedlow, 23 Henry Purdy

Venue: Coventry Building Society Arena
Kick-off: 15:00 BST (14:00 GMT)
Referee: Karl Dickson
Assistant Referees: Ian Tempest, Gareth Holsgrove
TMO: Claire Hodnett

Sunday

London Irish v Sale Sharks

Form: London Irish are without a win in Gallagher Premiership Rugby since their 36-33 victory at home to Bath on 27 March. The Exiles have lost their last three matches at Brentford Community Stadium against Harlequins, Exeter, and Wasps. Sale Sharks have won nine of their last eleven Gallagher Premiership Rugby matches but have not started a Premiership Rugby campaign with a pair of victories since 2008/09. The Sharks have lost their last two away games in the tournament, both on visits to Exeter on successive weekends last June. Sale have won their last eight fixtures against London Irish in Premiership Rugby since the Exiles 25-23 win at Madejski Stadium in April 2015. Sale won 21-13 on their only previous visit to Brentford last December.

Prediction: Sale Sharks by 3

The teams:

London Irish: 15 Tom Parton, 14 Kyle Rowe, 13 Curtis Rona, 12 Terrence Hepetema, 11 Ollie Hassell-Collins, 10 Paddy Jackson, 9 Ben White, 8 Albert Tuisue, 7 Ben Donnell, 6 Matt Rogerson (c), 5 Adam Coleman, 4 Rob Simmons, 3 Marcel van der Merwe, 2 Agustin Creevy, 1 Will Goodrick-Clarke
Replacements: 16 Mike Willemse, 17 Allan Dell, 18 Ollie Hoskins, 19 George Nott, 20 Steve Mafi, 21 Sean O’Brien, 22 Hugh O’Sullivan, 23 Benhard van Rensburg

Sale Sharks: 15 Simon Hammersley, 14 Byron McGuigan, 13 Sam James, 12 Manu Tuilagi, 11 Marland Yarde, 10 AJ MacGinty, 9 Raffi Quirke, 8 Jono Ross (c), 7 Ben Curry, 6 Cameron Neild, 5 JP du Preez, 4 Cobus Wiese, 3 Nick Schonert, 2 Akker van der Merwe, 1 Bevan Rodd
Replacements: 16 Tommy Taylor, 17 Ross Harrison, 18 Coenie Oosthuizen, 19 Rouban Birch, 20 Sam Dugdale, 21 Will Cliff, 22 Keiran Wilkinson, 23 Denny Solomona

Venue: Brentford Community Stadium
Kick-off: 15:00 BST (14:00 GMT)
Referee: Wayne Barnes
Assistant Referees: Andrew Jackson, Jamie Leahy
TMO: Tom Foley