Premiership: Five things we’ve learned from the opening weekend
England’s Premiership kicked off at the weekend as 12 of the 13 sides got their domestic campaigns underway. With no relegation, a heavy calendar and so many evenly matched sides, this season may just be one of the tightest in recent seasons. Here is what the first week has taught us.
Matson’s dream start
Harlequins’ new head honcho Tabai Matson began his stint as senior coach with a bonus point 26-20 win over Newcastle. The Falcons, who have ex Quins staff and players such as Dean Richards and Mike Brown in their ranks, were impressive defensively and in the ruck for large parts of the game but were unable to match the champions’ attacking play, orchestrated by Tommaso Allan.
Harlequins’ loose style got them into bother, Danny Care’s intercepted pass allowing Louis Schreuder to score for Newcastle, but the visitors were able to close out the game with tries from Louis Lynagh [2], Joe Marchant and Care.
The win couldn’t be more ideal for Matson, who inherited a side flying high following their Premiership victory last season. Anything less than silverware would technically be a worse result than their 2020-21 campaign. No pressure.
Over and Over
One down, 27 to go. This season will see sides play at least 28 first-team games: 24 regular league matches and at least four European fixtures.
Combined with a mixture of midweek cup games and a plethora of international fixtures, squads will be stretched like never before.
Many teams have begun their campaigns without British and Irish Lions and southern hemisphere stars due to competition and rest. This season will stretch everybody, and many will suffer as a result.
Prowling Tigers
Leicester roared back into life with a display reminiscent of their years of European dominance. Battling forwards and smooth back play on top of a resounding defensive effort saw the East Midlands side topple last year’s losing Premiership finalists, Exeter Chiefs, 34-19.
The Tigers are top of the pile after round one for the first time since 2010-11, and will hope their recent seasons of misery are long in the past. A combination of experienced internationals and exciting youth players can give Leicester a squad worthy of the playoffs.
No relegation
The 287 points scored this weekend is the most in an opening round of games since 2017-18 [344]. The threat of relegation has been removed, controversially, and some believe this will lead to an open, expansive brand of the game filtering through the league.
After all, Quins’ shock win last season taught us that winning teams aren’t always built on defence. Relegation often gave viewers key games towards the bottom of the table later in the season, though. With those gone, the argument arises surrounding the worth of any given dead rubber fixture.
Pragmatism
Bristol Bears’ showboating style was shot down on Friday night by a resurgent and determined Saracens, returning to the Premiership after their relegation. It didn’t take long to see the pragmatic playbook put to good use as Alex Lozowski punished Bristol errors, slotting seven penalties – only added to by his team when winger Alex Lewington crossed in the corner after gathering a kick from the fly-half.
Bristol’s open style couldn’t carve open the reluctant away defence, perhaps an ominous sign of things to come. Line speed has always thwarted attack minded defences, and Sarries produced a masterclass.