Teams announced for Premiership regular-season finale

David Skippers

There are four Premiership fixtures scheduled for Saturday with Bath, Exeter Chiefs, Harlequins and Wasps hosting Northampton Saints, Sale Sharks, Newcastle Falcons and Leicester Tigers respectively.

Bath v Northampton Saints

All eight Bath players selected by England in midweek will start against Northampton Saints in the final round of the 2020/21 Premiership campaign.

Academy graduates Charlie Ewels and Miles Reid pack down at five and six while another homegrown duo in Max Ojomoh and Tom de Glanville line up at inside centre and full-back.

Loosehead Beno Obano returns from suspension and Sam Underhill retains his place on the flank. Joe Cokanasiga earns a spot on the wing and Ben Spencer is at nine.

The scrum-half is joined at half-back by Welshman Rhys Priestland who will make his 120th and final appearance in Blue, Black and White.

The fly-half has been an instrumental figure during his six years at the club and is one of two starters that will depart this summer. Prop Christian Judge will also bid farewell from the start as he lines up at tighthead. The 28-year-old has made over 40 outings for Bath in his two years at the Rec.

Jacques du Toit, Josh McNally and Taulupe Faletau complete the forwards with Jonathan Joseph and Anthony Watson named in the backline.

On the bench, Zach Mercer will earn his 100th and final Bath cap when he takes to the field.

Henry Thomas – another Bath centurion – will also feature for the last time as will Will Chudley. The pair will end their time in Somerset with 118 and 56 matches to their name, respectively.

Meanwhile, Lewis Ludlam will lead Northampton Saints when they take to the field for the final time this season on Saturday.

With the Men in Black, Green and Gold having secured a fifth-place finish in the Premiership last weekend, director of rugby Chris Boyd makes total of nine changes as he and his charges head to Bath for the season finale.

Skipper Ludlam – one of four Saints called up into the England training squad this week – Courtney Lawes and Tom Wood are the only remaining members of the pack from last weekend’s nail-biting clash with reigning champions Exeter Chiefs, with the three internationals lining up together in the back-row.

A completely new-look tight five sees locks Alex Coles and Alex Moon man the engine room, with Nick Auterac, Mike Haywood and Paul Hill coming into the front-row.

After making his comeback from injury last week off the bench, scrum-half Alex Mitchell joins fly-half James Grayson in the half-back berths for the trip to the West Country, while Rory Hutchinson partners Fraser Dingwall in the centres outside them.

Taqele Naiyaravoro will mark a half-century of Premiership appearances as he takes his spot on the wing opposite Tom Collins, with Tommy Freeman – who collected Saints’ Breakthrough Player of the Season award on Tuesday – rounding off the side at full-back.

Ollie Newman will make his senior Saints debut should he enter the game from the bench, while Connor Tupai and Josh Gillespie are also set to make their first Northampton appearances of the season amongst the replacements.

Form: Bath’s match with Gloucester last weekend was called off due to the health crisis. Bath have lost their last five matches in all competitions since beating Leicester 21-20 at the Recreation Ground in Round 16 of Premiership Rugby. Bath have been defeated in their last three first team matches at The Rec and have not lost four in succession at the venue in the professional era. Northampton Saints’ only victory in the last four rounds of Premiership Rugby was 30-25 at home to Wasps on 29 May. The Saints’ 18-10 reversal on their most recent away trip to Newcastle ended a three-game winning run on the road. Bath’s only defeat to Northampton in their last six Premiership Rugby encounters was 26-27 at Franklin’s Gardens in February 2019. Northampton have lost on their last five visits to Bath in all tournaments.

The teams:

Bath: 15 Tom de Glanville, 14 Anthony Watson, 13 Jonathan Joseph, 12 Max Ojomoh, 11 Joe Cokanasiga, 10 Rhys Priestland, 9 Ben Spencer, 8 Taulupe Faletau, 7 Sam Underhill, 6 Miles Reid, 5 Charlie Ewels (c), 4 Josh McNally, 3 Christian Judge, 2 Jacques du Toit, 1 Beno Obano
Replacements: 16 Tom Doughty, 17 Juan Schoeman, 18 Henry Thomas, 19 Will Spencer, 20 Zach Mercer, 21 Josh Bayliss, 22 Will Chudley, 23 Orlando Bailey

Northampton: 15 Tommy Freeman, 14 Tom Collins, 13 Fraser Dingwall, 12 Rory Hutchinson, 11 Taqele Naiyaravoro, 10 James Grayson, 9 Alex Mitchell, 8 Tom Wood, 7 Lewis Ludlam (c), 6 Courtney Lawes, 5 Alex Moon, 4 Alex Coles, 3 Paul Hill, 2 Mike Haywood, 1 Nick Auterac
Replacements: 16 James Fish, 17 Alex Waller, 18 Ehren Painter, 19 Api Ratuniyarawa, 20 Ollie Newman, 21 Connor Tupai, 22 Matt Proctor, 23 Josh Gillespie

Venue: Recreation Ground
Kick-off: 15:00 BST (14:00 GMT)
Referee: Ian Tempest
Assistant referees: Hamish Smales, Peter Allan
TMO: David Rose

Exeter Chiefs v Sale Sharks

Exeter Chiefs director of rugby Rob Baxter has made four changes to his starting line-up for this important fixture which is set to determine which team finishes in second spot in the standings.

Alec Hepburn and Dave Ewers come into the pack in place of Ben Moon and Sean Lonsdale, while in the backline Ollie Devoto returns in the centre ahead of Ian Whitten, and Alex Cuthbert gets the nod on the right wing over Facundo Cordero.

Baxter also revealed that forwards Tomas Francis and Jonny Gray are edging ever closer to a return, as is Jack Nowell who has returned to full training this week following a knee injury.

Meanwhile, Alex Sanderson makes only four changes to his starting XV as the Sale Sharks director of rugby looks to keep up his squad’s momentum as they prepare for their first play-off appearance in 15 years.

Manu Tuilagi make his first start for Sale in nine months after the centre’s late omission last weekend due to Covid-19 protocols. Tuilagi joins British and Irish Lion Tom Curry as both internationals return to action at Sandy Park this weekend.

Ross Harrison joins Springboks Akker van der Merwe and Coenie Oosthuizen in an unchanged Sharks front-row for the trip to Devon. Cobus Wiese replaces Josh Beaumont in the second-row and takes his place alongside compatriot Jean-Luc du Preez for only the second time this season.

Cameron Neild’s man-of-the-match performance against Harlequins in Round 21 is rewarded with a second consecutive start against the Chiefs. The Altrincham-born flanker joins captain Curry and Daniel du Preez in a mobile Sharks back-row.

Faf de Klerk and AJ MacGinty continue in tandem as they continue to build one of the Premiership’s most clinical half-back partnerships. The pair have the devastating power of Tuilagi at their disposal at 12, with the England international teaming up with Sam James at centre after being forced out of last week’s match.

Academy graduate Arron Reed gets his chance to shine as Sanderson names the wing in a Sharks starting line-up for the first time since Round 17. Preston-born Reed is joined by Scotland international Byron McGuigan and Simon Hammersley in the Sale back three.

Curtis Langdon, Bevan Rodd and the departing Will-Griff John take their place on the Sharks bench as replacements for the front-row, with James Phillips and Ben Curry providing further cover for the forwards.

Veteran scrum-half Will Cliff takes the number 21 shirt for the Sharks’ final match of the regular-season and joins Robert du Preez and powerhouse Rohan Janse van Rensburg as cover for the backs.

Form: Exeter Chiefs have won their last six Premiership Rugby matches since their 34-18 defeat at Gloucester in Round 15. The Chiefs have lost just twice at Sandy Park in Premiership Rugby this season, to Bristol in Round 6 and Northampton in Round 10. Sale Sharks have won their last eight Premiership Rugby matches their best sequence in the competition. The Sharks have lost just three times away from home in Premiership Rugby this season, at Newcastle in Round Two, at Harlequins in Round 10 and at Northampton in Round 13. Sale have won two of their last three matches against the Chiefs, with their 22-19 victory at Sandy Park on their most recent visit in January 2020 being their first win at the venue since 2014.

The teams:

Exeter: 15 Stuart Hogg, 14 Alex Cuthbert, 13 Henry Slade, 12 Ollie Devoto, 11 Tom O’Flaherty, 10 Joe Simmonds (c), 9 Jack Maunder, 8 Sam Simmonds, 7 Jannes Kirsten, 6 Dave Ewers, 5 Jonny Hill, 4 Sam Skinner, 3 Harry Williams, 2 Luke Cowan-Dickie, 1 Alec Hepburn
Replacements:
16 Jack Yeandle, 17 Ben Moon, 18 Marcus Street, 19 Sean Lonsdale, 20 Richard Capstick, 21 Stu Townsend, 22 Harvey Skinner, 23 Ian Whitten

Sale: 15 Simon Hammersley, 14 Byron McGuigan, 13 Sam James, 12 Manu Tuilagi, 11 Arron Reed, 10 AJ MacGinty, 9 Faf de Klerk, 8 Daniel du Preez, 7 Tom Curry (c), 6 Cameron Neild, 5 Jean-Luc du Preez, 4 Cobus Wiese, 3 Coenie Oosthuizen, 2 Akker van der Merwe, 1 Ross Harrison
Replacements:
16 Curtis Langdon, 17 Bevan Rodd, 18 Will-Griff John, 19 James Phillips, 20 Ben Curry, 21 Will Cliff, 22 Robert du Preez, 23 Rohan Janse van Rensburg

Venue: Sandy Park
Kick-off: 15:00 BST (14:00 GMT)
Referee: Karl Dickson
Assistant referees: Greg Macdonald, Wayne Falla
TMO: Clare Hodnett

Harlequins v Newcastle Falcons

Harlequins’ coaching group have named their matchday squad for their clash with Newcastle Falcons at Twickenham Stoop.

Five players retain their spots in the starting XV that travelled to Sale Sharks last time out, with eight Harlequins Academy products named in the run-on side for the final home game of the season, with a total of 12 pathway players included in the 23.

Club captain Stephan Lewies misses out on selection this week due to injury, with Dino Lamb stepping to start in the five jersey, with Academy player Hugh Tizard taking up a role on the bench.

Amongst the replacements, back-row James Chisholm and wing Cadan Murley return from spells on the sidelines for inclusion in the matchday 23.

Meanwhile, Newcastle Falcons captain Mark Wilson plays his 150th Premiership game on Saturday.

The flanker forms part of a side showing just one personnel change from last weekend’s 24-14 home win over Worcester Warriors – Mateo Carreras replacing fellow Argentinean Matias Orlando in a move which sees George Wacokecoke switching from wing to centre.

Saturday’s squad includes all five players who were called up into England’s training squad, with Adam Radwan, Sean Robinson, Trevor Davison, Callum Chick and Jamie Blamire all involved in the matchday 23.

Having won their last three home games Newcastle are now looking to take that form on the road, with the added incentive of trying to claim Champions Cup rugby for next season should they finish in the top eight.

Form: Harlequins’ last four matches in Premiership Rugby have all been won by the home side on the day. Quins have lost only once at the Twickenham Stoop in 2021, 57-21 to Ulster in the European Challenge Cup Round of 16. Newcastle Falcons’ only defeat in the last four rounds of Premiership Rugby was 74-3 at Exeter on May 30. The Falcons have won just once away from home in any competition in 2021: 28-24 at Ospreys in the European Challenge Cup Round of 16. The last dozen meetings between the two clubs in Premiership Rugby have been evenly split with six wins apiece. The Falcons’ only victory at the Stoop in Premiership Rugby since 2000 was 28-10 in February 2018.

The teams:

Harlequins: 15 Tyrone Green, 14 Louis Lynagh, 13 Joe Marchant, 12 Ben Tapuai, 11 Aaron Morris, 10 Marcus Smith, 9 Danny Care, 8 Alex Dombrandt (c), 7 Jack Kenningham, 6 Tom Lawday, 5 Dino Lamb, 4 Matt Symons, 3 Wilco Louw, 2 Scott Baldwin, 1 Joe Marler
Replacements:
16 Joe Gray, 17 Santiago Garcia Botta, 18 Will Collier, 19 Hugh Tizard, 20 James Chisholm, 21 Martin Landajo, 22 Luke Northmore, 23 Cadan Murley

Newcastle: 15 Joel Hodgson, 14 Adam Radwan, 13 George Wacokecoke, 12 Luther Burrell, 11 Mateo Carreras, 10 Brett Connon, 9 Louis Schreuder, 8 Callum Chick, 7 Mark Wilson (c), 6 Will Welch, 5 Sean Robinson, 4 Greg Peterson, 3 Trevor Davison, 2 George McGuigan, 1 Adam Brocklebank
Replacements:
16 Jamie Blamire, 17 Kyle Cooper, 18 Rodney Ah You, 19 Philip van der Walt, 20 Carl Fearns, 21 Michael Young, 22 Pete Lucock, 23 Alex Tait

Venue: Twickenham Stoop
Kick-off: 15:00 BST (14:00 GMT)
Referee: Christophe Ridley
Assistant referees: Jack Makepeace, Simon McConnell
TMO: Nigel Carrick

Wasps v Leicester Tigers

Lee Blackett has named his Wasps side to host Leicester Tigers, in front of fans at Ricoh Arena, in the final round of the Premiership.

There are five changes to the starting line-up that won against London Irish last time out.

Malakai Fekitoa returns from injury to partner Michael Le Bourgeois in the centres.

Josh Bassett will make his 150th Wasps appearance on Saturday, as he forms the back three with Marcus Watson and Rob Miller, who comes in for the injured Charlie Atkinson at full-back.

Jacob Umaga will also make his 50th Wasps appearance on Saturday, as he once again forms the half-back partnership with Dan Robson.

The front-row trio of Simon McIntyre, Tommy Taylor and Kieran Brookes line up for their final appearances in Wasps colours.

Will Rowlands also makes his final outing in Black and Gold in the second-row with James Gaskell.

The only other change to the pack sees Sione Vailanu come in for the injured Thomas Young. Vailanu starts at number eight in his final Wasps game, meaning man-of-the-match from last week Tom Willis moves to blindside flanker and captain Brad Shields shifts to seven.

Amongst the replacements there is a welcome return to action for Alfie Barbeary. He is joined on the bench by Gabriel Oghre, Ben Harris, Jeff Toomaga-Allen, Tim Cardall, Jimmy Gopperth, Juan de Jongh and Ben Vellacott, with de Jongh and Vellacott in line to play their last games for the club.

Meanwhile, Leicester hooker Julián Montoya makes his first starting appearance since the meeting with Wasps in Round 10 of the campaign after returning from injury as a replacement in Round 21 last week.

The Argentina international is joined in the Leicester front-row by Ellis Genge and Dan Cole, with Steve Borthwick naming an unchanged second-row pairing of Harry Wells and Cameron Henderson.

Loosehead prop Genge will captain the side.

Jasper Wiese returns to the starting line-up at number eight, with Hanro Liebenberg moving to openside flanker. George Martin retains his place at blindside.

Jack Van Poortvliet and Johnny McPhillips are the Tigers half-backs, in the duo’s first starting appearance together this season.

Dan Kelly returns to the matchday squad at inside centre in a midfield pairing with Matt Scott.

Zack Henry starts at full-back, with Freddie Steward and Nemani Nadolo as the wings.

Charlie Clare, James Whitcombe and Joe Heyes are the front-row replacements, with Tomás Lavanini and Ollie Chessum included as the other forwards on the Leicester bench. Ben Youngs, Matías Moroni and Kini Murimurivalu are the backs replacements.

Form: Wasps’ last eight matches in Premiership Rugby have resulted in four wins and four defeats. Wasps have won their last two games at the Ricoh Arena in Premiership Rugby to end a five-game losing run at the venue in the tournament. Leicester Tigers’ last six first team games have been evenly split with three wins and three defeats. The Tigers have won twice away from home (excluding declared wins) in Premiership Rugby this season, at Gloucester in Round 13 and at Worcester in Round 20. They have not won successive away games in the tournament since May 2018. The last seven meetings between the two clubs in Premiership Rugby have all gone the way of home field advantage. Leicester have visited the Ricoh Arena on eight previous occasions in all tournaments with their only victory being on their very first visit in May 2015.

The teams:

Wasps: 15 Rob Miller, 14 Marcus Watson, 13 Malakai Fekitoa, 12 Michael Le Bourgeois, 11 Josh Bassett, 10 Jacob Umaga, 9 Dan Robson, 8 Sione Vailanu, 7 Brad Shields (c), 6 Tom Willis, 5 James Gaskell, 4 Will Rowlands, 3 Kieran Brookes, 2 Tommy Taylor, 1 Simon McIntyre
Replacements: 16 Gabriel Oghre, 17 Ben Harris, 18 Jeff Toomaga-Allen, 19 Tim Cardall, 20 Alfie Barbeary, 21 Ben Vellacott, 22 Jimmy Gopperth, 23 Juan de Jongh

Leicester Tigers: 15 Zack Henry, 14 Freddie Steward, 13 Matt Scott, 12 Dan Kelly, 11 Nemani Nadolo, 10 Johnny McPhillips, 9 Jack Van Poortvliet, 8 Jasper Wiese, 7 Hanro Liebenberg, 6 George Martin, 5 Cameron Henderson, 4 Harry Wells, 3 Dan Cole, 2 Julián Montoya, 1 Ellis Genge (c)
Replacements: 16 Charlie Clare, 17 James Whitcombe, 18 Joe Heyes, 19 Tomás Lavanini, 20 Ollie Chessum, 21 Ben Youngs, 22 Matías Moroni, 23 Kini Murimurivalu

Venue: Ricoh Arena
Kick-off: 15:00 BST (14:00 GMT)
Referee: Luke Pearce
Assistant referees: Mike Hudson, Jonathan Healy
TMO: Tom Foley