There’s three games on Saturday before Bath and Gloucester conclude the Premiership week at the Recreation Ground on Sunday.
Saracens vs Bristol
For Saracens, Neil de Kock and Kelly Brown make their final appearances of their careers in the final home game of the regular season.
It is also a day of milestones on Saturday with hooker Schalk Brits making his 200th appearance for the club he has served with distinction since his arrival in 2009.
Owen Farrell will skipper the side in what will be the England fly-half’s 150th appearance for the club.
Up front, Brits will bring up his double-century of appearances alongside Mako Vunipola and Vincent Koch in the front-row. Maro Itoje will start alongside George Kruis at lock, whilst in the back-row, in his final game for the club Brown will start at blindside flanker with Schalk Burger (openside flanker) and Billy Vunipola (number eight) packing down alongside the Saracens stalwart in the back row.
In the halves, De Kock will bring down the curtain on a legendary 11-year career with Saracens making his 263rd appearance for the Men in Black. The former club captain will partner skipper on the day, Farrell.
At centre, Brad Barritt misses out with a knock, so Alex Lozowski comes into the midfield to wear the number twelve jersey, he partners Nick Tompkins at centre. In the back-three, after his try scoring return from the bench against Munster, Chris Wyles comes into the side on the left wing joining Chris Ashton (right wing) and Alex Goode at full-back.
Meanwhile, Olly Robinson returns to the starting line-up for Bristol.The back rower is one of two changes to the side that suffered defeat to Wasps, as Jack O’Connell comes into the front row.
Ollie Dawe could make his Premiership debut from the replacements bench, while Siale Piutau recovers from a knee injury to be included in the 23-man squad ahead of the Allianz Park clash.
Form: Saracens have won their last five first team matches since their defeat to Leicester at Allianz Park in the semi-final of the Anglo-Welsh Cup, Sarries have not lost at the venue in Aviva Premiership Rugby since Northampton were the visitors on 5 March 2016. Bristol Rugby have lost their last four Aviva Premiership Rugby encounters since beating Bath by a solitary point at Ashton Gate on 26 February. Bristol’s only away win in the tournament this season was also be a single point, at Sale on New Year’s Day. Saracens have won their last five matches against Bristol in all competitions since the West Countrymen’s 18-3 victory at Memorial Stadium in Premiership Rugby in January 2008. This is Bristol’s first visit to Allianz Park.
The teams:
Saracens: 15 Alex Goode, 14 Chris Ashton, 13 Nick Tompkins, 12 Alex Lozowski, 11 Chris Wyles, 10 Owen Farrell (c), 9 Neil De Kock, 8 Billy Vunipola, 7 Schalk Burger, 6 Kelly Brown, 5 George Kruis, 4 Maro Itoje, 3 Vincent Koch, 2 Schalk Brits, 1 Mako Vunipola
Replacements: 16 Jamie George, 17 Titi Lamositele, 18 Petrus Du Plessis, 19 Jim Hamilton, 20 Ben Earl, 21 Richard Wigglesworth, 22 Matt Gallagher, 23 Mike Ellery
Bristol: 15 Jason Woodward, 14 Ryan Edwards, 13 Will Hurrell, 12 Gavin Henson, 11 Jack Tovey, 10 Billy Searle, 9 Alby Mathewson, 8 Mitch Eadie, 7 Olly Robinson, 6 Sam Jeffries, 5 Mark Sorenson, 4 James Phillips, 3 Gaston Cortes, 2 Marc Jones (c), 1 Jack O’Connell
Replacements: 16 Max Crumpton, 17 Ollie Dawe, 18 Jamal Ford-Robinson, 19 Ben Glynn, 20 Nick Fenton-Wells, 21 Rhodri Williams, 22 Tusi Pisi, 23 Siale Piutau
Date: Saturday, April 29
Venue: Allianz Park
Kick-off: 15:00 local (14:00 GMT)
Referee: Andrew P Jackson
Assistant Referees: Anthony Woodthorpe, Paul Burton
TMO: David Rose
Leicester vs Sale
Graham Kitchener and Adam Thompstone will make their 100th starting appearances in a Leicester Tigers shirt in the final home game of the season, against Sale Sharks on Saturday.
Kitchener, signed from Worcester in 2011, is included in the second row alongside Dom Barrow, while club captain Tom Youngs returns in the only change to the pack following the bonus-point win over Newcastle Falcons in the last league game.
Thompstone joined Tigers from London Irish in 2012 and was this week named as the Players’ Player of the Year. He is included in a backine which shows two changes for the Premiership Round 21 clash with the Falcons as Owen Williams starts at centre and Mathew Tait comes in at full-back in the absence of Maxime Mermoz and Telusa Veainu.
Matt Smith and Peter Betham are included among the replacements.
Meanwhile, there are four changes to the Sale starting XV. In the front row, Kieran Longbottom comes in at tighthead prop, replacing the injured Halani Aulika, who is out for the rest of the season with a broken arm.
There are two alterations in the back row, with Tom Curry starting in the place of his brother Ben, and Josh Beaumont dropping out, and ex-Tiger Laurence Pearce starting at number eight.
In the backs, Josh Charnley starts on the wing, replacing Byron McGuigan.
On the bench, Diogo Ferreira could make his Sharks debut having coming through the Academy system, and there are returns for David Seymour, Peter Stringer and Johnny Leota.
Form: Leicester Tigers have suffered just two reversals in the last seven rounds of Aviva Premiership Rugby: at home to Exeter Chiefs and against Bath at Twickenham. The Tigers other two home defeats in Premiership Rugby this season came at the hands of Wasps and Saracens. Sale Sharks only win in their last five games was 36-26 at home to Worcester Warriors in round 19 of Aviva Premiership Rugby. Sale have won just once away from home in the tournament this season: 31-13 at Bristol in round 7. Sale have won their last three matches against Tigers but have never won four in a row against the East Midlanders. The Sharks were victorious 10-3 on their most recent visit to Welford Road in February 2016 and have only once before won successive matches at the venue – in 2003 in Premiership Rugby and in the Knockout Cup.
The teams:
Leicester: 15 Mathew Tait, 14 Adam Thompstone, 13 Jack Roberts, 12 Owen Williams, 11 J P Pietersen, 10 Freddie Burns, 9 Ben Youngs, 8 Luke Hamilton, 7 Brendon O’Connor, 6 Mike Williams, 5 Graham Kitchener, 4 Dom Barrow, 3 Dan Cole, 2 Tom Youngs (c), 1 Ellis Genge
Replacements: 16 George McGuigan, 17 Greg Bateman, 18 Fraser Balmain, 19 Mike Fitzgerald, 20 Harry Thacker, 21 Sam Harrison, 22 Matt Smith, 23 Peter Betham
Sale: 15 Mike Haley, 14 Denny Solomona, 13 Sam James, 12 Mark Jennings, 11 Josh Charnley, 10 AJ MacGinty, 9 Mike Phillips, 8 Laurence Pearce, 7 Tom Curry, 6 Cameron Neild, 5 Andrei Ostrikov, 4 Bryn Evans, 3 Kieran Longbottom, 2 Rob Webber (c), 1 Ross Harrison
Replacements: 16 Ben Curry, 17 James Flynn, 18 Diogo Ferreira, 19 George Nott, 20 David Seymour, 21 Peter Stringer, 22 Johnny Leota, 23 Byron McGuigan
Date: Saturday, April 29
Venue: Welford Road
Kick-off: 15:00 local (14:00 GMT)
Referee: Craig Maxwell-Keys
Assistant Referees: Nigel Carrick, Matthew O’Grady
TMO: Geoff Warren
Exeter vs Northampton
Team news for the Chiefs sees head coach Rob Baxter stick with an unchanged pack of forwards who will be headed up by captain Jack Yeandle in the front row.
Behind, however, there are changes. Niggling injuries to Jack Maunder and Henry Slade mean Stu Townsend and Gareth Steenson start at half-backs; Ian Whitten returns at centre at the expense of Michele Campagnaro; while in the back three Jack Nowell, recently named in the British and Irish Lions squad, returns on the wing for James Short.
On the bench, prop Harry Williams and fly-half Joe Simmonds are both recalled to first team duty, as is scrum-half Will Chudley, who has recovered from operations on both of his shoulders to make his first appearance since Exeter draw at Saracens at the turn of the year.
Meanwhile, for Northampton injuries to Louis Picamoles and Stephen Myler have forced two changes to the starting line-up which began the Round 20 thriller against Saracens, with Teimana Harrison and JJ Hanrahan starting at number eight and fly-half respectively. Otherwise the starting XV remains unchanged.
Form: Exeter Chiefs have won their last six matches in Aviva Premiership Rugby gaining a maximum 30 league points – no side has ever achieved seven maximum point wins in a row. The Chiefs most recent defeat in the competition came when Bath visited Sandy Park in round 7. The Chiefs are unbeaten in their last eight first team games at Sandy Park, since Bordeaux won there in the European Champions Cup on 11 December. Northampton Saints have slipped to three straight late defeats in Aviva Premriship Rugby, in each instance Saints were leading with less than three minutes to go. Northampton’s only away win in any competition since New Year’s Day was 32-12 at Sale in round 17 of Aviva Premiership Rugby. The last four fixtures between the two clubs have all been won by the home side on the day whilst Northampton’s most recent victory at Sandy Park was by the narrowest of margins in February 2014.
The teams:
Exeter: 15 Lachie Turner, 14 Jack Nowell, 13 Ian Whitten, 12 Ollie Devoto, 11 Olly Woodburn, 10 Gareth Steenson, 9 Stuart Townsend, 8 Kai Horstmann, 7 Don Armand, 6 Dave Ewers, 5 Geoff Parling, 4 Dave Dennis, 3 Greg Holmes, 2 Jack Yeandle (c), 1 Carl Rimmer
Replacements: 16 Luke Cowan-Dickie, 17 Ben Moon, 18 Harry Williams, 19 Ollie Atkins, 20 Julian Salvi, 21 Will Chudley, 22 Joe Simmonds, 23 Sam Hill
Northampton: 15 Ahsee Tuala, 14 Ken Pisi, 13 Luther Burrell, 12 Harry Mallinder, 11 Ben Foden, 10 JJ Hanrahan, 9 Nic Groom, 8 Teimana Harrison, 7 Tom Wood (c), 6 Jamie Gibson, 5 David Ribbans, 4 Courtney Lawes, 3 Kieran Brookes, 2 Dylan Hartley, 1 Alex Waller
Replacements: 16 Mikey Haywood, 17 Campese Ma’afu, 18 Gareth Denman, 19 Api Ratuniyarawa, 20 Sam Dickinson, 21 Lee Dickson, 22 Nafi Tuitavake, 23 Juan Pablo Estelles
Date: Saturday, April 29
Venue: Sandy Park
Kick-off: 15:00 local (14:00 GMT)
Referee: JP Doyle
Assistant Referees: Jack Makepeace, Ross Campbell
TMO: David Grashoff
Bath vs Gloucester
Matt Garvey will make his first start for Bath since January against Gloucester. One of eight changes to the starting line-up, Garvey comes into the side at blindside flanker following his return to action from the bench against Stade Français last weekend.
International duo Francois Louw and Taulupe Faletau complete the back-row. Chris Brooker makes his first start for the club at hooker, with Shaun Knight propping down at tighthead and Nathan Catt continuing on the loosehead side. Elliott Stooke joins Luke Charteris in the second row.
Tom Homer returns to the starting line-up at full-back, with Anthony Watson switching to the wing. The other wing will be occupied by Aled Brew, who made a try-scoring return to action in Bath United’s 34-7 win against Harlequins A two weeks ago. Max Clark and Ben Tapuai combine in the midfield, as Rhys Priestland co-captains the side from fly-half. The Welsh pivot links up with Kahn Foutali’i in Bath’s final home game of the season.
Meanwhile, Gloucester make only one change to the starting line-up, Mariano Galarza coming in for Tom Savage in the second row.
The only other new face in the matchday 23 is that of Ciaran Knight, who could well line up against cousin Shaun, the former Gloucester prop who now plays for Bath, in what would be Knight’s first Premiership appearance if he comes off the bench.
Form: Bath Rugby’s only victory in the last five rounds of Aviva Premiership Rugby was 27-21 over Leicester Tigers at Twickenham in round 19. Bath’s only defeat at the Recreation Ground in any tournament in 2017 came when Wasps were the visitors in round 17 of Premiership Rugby. Gloucester Rugby’s only loss in their last five matches in all tournaments was 14-16 at Newcastle in Aviva Premiership Rugby on 7 April. Gloucester have won just once on the road in Premiership Rugby since September: 32-14 at Bristol on 24 March. Bath have lost only one of their last ten fixtures against Gloucester in all tournaments: 11-15 at the Recreation Ground in this equivalent fixture in Premiership Rugby in round 11 last year.
The teams:
Bath: 15 Tom Homer, 14 Anthony Watson, 13 Max Clark, 12 Ben Tapuai, 11 Aled Brew, 10 Rhys Priestland (c), 9 Kahn Fotuali’i, 8 Taulupe Faletau, 7 Francois Louw 6 Matt Garvey, 5 Elliott Stooke, 4 Luke Charteris, 3 Shaun Knight, 2 Chris Brooker, 1 Nathan Catt
Replacements: 16 Ross Batty, 17 Beno Obano, 18 Kane Palma-Newport, 19 Dave Attwood, 20 Tom Ellis, 21 Chris Cook, 22 George Ford, 23 Robbie Fruean
Gloucester: 15 Tom Marshall, 14 Jonny May, 13 Henry Trinder, 12 Mark Atkinson, 11 David Halaifonua, 10 Billy Burns, 9 Willi Heinz (c), 8 Ben Morgan, 7 Jacob Rowan, 6 Ross Moriarty, 5 Jeremy Thrush, 4 Mariano Galarza, 3 John Afoa, 2 Richard Hibbard, 1 Josh Hohneck
Replacements: 16 Motu Matu’u, 17 Paddy McAllister, 18 Ciaran Knight, 19 Tom Savage, 20 Lewis Ludlow, 21 Greig Laidlaw, 22 Billy Twelvetrees, 23 Charlie Sharples
Date: Sunday, April 30
Venue: Recreation Ground
Kick-off: 15:00 local (14:00 GMT)
Referee: Matthew Carley
Assistant Referees: Wayne Falla, Adam Leal
TMO: Keith Lewis
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