Club Rugby

Full Premiership 2022/23 fixtures: Westcountry rivals go toe-to-toe in opening round

by
Nick Powell
19 July 2022

Bristol Bears and Bath will raise the curtain of the Premiership for the second time in four seasons as they kick off the new campaign on 9 September

Bristol’s home Ashton Gate also plays host to the opening game for the second year in a row, with the Bears having lost to Saracens in the first game of last year’s season.

Champions Leicester travel to Exeter Chiefs, who missed out on the play-offs for the first time since 2016 last season, while fellow finalists Saracens get a bye week in the 13-team league.

Their first game is in Round 2 against Harlequins – who face Newcastle away for the second year in a row in the two sides’ opening match – but the match against their London rivals will not feature any England internationals, as those players must take a mandatory 10 week rest from the last tour match, last Saturday against Australia.

The mandatory rest period means that Saracens and Harlequins’ wait for a regular season game involving internationals will total more than three years, with their last one in January 2020 and their next one in March 2023 (Photo by Alex Pantling/Getty Images)

Internationals will be available for their reverse fixture though, as Saracens revert to their typical visitors Quins in their big stadium match “The Showdown” at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, having hosted Bristol last year, while Quins host the Bears in their “Big Game” at Twickenham between Christmas and New Year.

If Quins choose to hold their “Big Summer Kick-Off” event again this year, that will likely be against towards the end of April, after it was played against Gloucester in the penultimate weekend May of this year.

That same weekend will be hosting a match at Twickenham once again, but this will be the Premiership Final on the 24th, reverting to an earlier date than the recent June finals this year because of the upcoming Rugby World Cup.

The Cherry and Whites start their campaign against Wasps this year with the first Sunday game of the season, while Sale Sharks and Northampton Saints will join Bristol and Bath in kicking things off on Friday.

Completing the opening round of fixtures, London Irish host Worcester at the Brentford Community Stadium.

The full list of fixtures is below:

Round 1

Bristol Bears vs Bath

Sale Sharks vs Northampton Saints

Exeter Chiefs vs Leicester Tigers

London Irish vs Worcester Warriors

Newcastle Falcons vs Harlequins

Gloucester vs Wasps

Round 2

Northampton Saints vs London Irish

Bath vs Sale Sharks

Harlequins vs Saracens

Leicester Tigers vs Newcastle Falcons

Wasps vs Bristol Bears

Worcester Warriors vs Exeter Chiefs

Round 3

Bath vs Wasps

Bristol Bears vs London Irish

Northampton Saints vs Leicester Tigers

Saracens vs Gloucester

Worcester Warriors vs Newcastle Falcons

Exeter Chiefs vs Harlequins

*Leicester Tigers and Northampton Saints will have their international players available for the East Midlands derby in Round 3, in a repeat of one of last year’s Premiership semi-finals*

Round 4

Newcastle Falcons vs Bristol Bears

Gloucester vs Worcester Warriors

London Irish vs Bath

Sale Sharks vs Exeter Chiefs

Saracens vs Leicester Tigers

Harlequins vs Northampton Saints

Round 5

Bristol Bears vs Exeter Chiefs

Bath vs Gloucester

Leicester Tigers vs Sale Sharks

Worcester Warriors vs Harlequins

Newcastle Falcons vs Saracens

Wasps vs Northampton Saints

Round 6

Sale Sharks vs London Irish

Exeter Chiefs vs Wasps

Gloucester vs Bristol Bears

Northampton Saints vs Newcastle Falcons

Saracens vs Bath

Harlequins vs Leicester Tigers

Round 7

London Irish vs Gloucester

Bath vs Northampton Saints

Bristol Bears vs Worcester Warriors

Exeter Chiefs vs Saracens

Leicester Tigers vs Wasps

Sale Sharks vs Harlequins

Round 8

Gloucester vs Exeter Chiefs

Harlequins vs London Irish

Northampton Saints vs Bristol Bears

Worcester Warriors vs Bath

Saracens vs Sale Sharks

Wasps vs Newcastle Falcons

Harlequins flanker Jack Kenningham — *London Irish and Quins meet in the South-West London Derby in Round 8*

Round 9

Northampton Saints vs Exeter Chiefs

Sale Sharks vs Gloucester

Leicester Tigers vs Worcester Warriors

London Irish vs Wasps

Newcastle Falcons vs Bath

Bristol Bears vs Saracens

Round 10

Bath vs Leicester Tigers

Gloucester vs Newcastle Falcons

Worcester Warriors vs Sale Sharks

Exeter Chiefs vs London Irish

Saracens vs Northampton Saints

Wasps vs Harlequins

Round 11

Harlequins vs Gloucester

Leicester Tigers vs London Irish

Newcastle Falcons vs Exeter Chiefs

Northampton Saints vs Worcester Warriors

Sale Sharks vs Bristol Bears

Saracens vs Wasps

Round 12

Bath vs Harlequins

Bristol Bears vs Leicester Tigers

Gloucester vs Northampton Saints

London Irish vs Newcastle Falcons

Wasps vs Sale Sharks

Worcester Warriors vs Saracens

Round 13

Exeter Chiefs vs Bath

Harlequins vs Bristol Bears

Leicester Tigers vs Gloucester

London Irish vs Saracens

Newcastle Falcons vs Sale Sharks

Wasps vs Worcester Warriors

Round 14

Bath vs Newcastle Falcons

Bristol Bears vs Wasps

Northampton Saints vs Harlequins

Sale Sharks vs Leicester Tigers

Saracens vs Exeter Chiefs

Worcester Warriors vs London Irish

*Saracens and Exeter, who met in the 2018 and 2019 finals, will play each other on the New Year’s weekend*

Round 15

Exeter Chiefs vs Worcester Warriors

Gloucester vs Bath

Harlequins vs Wasps

Leicester Tigers vs Northampton Saints

London Irish vs Bristol Bears

Saracens vs Newcastle Falcons

Round 16

Bath vs Saracens

Exeter Chiefs vs Gloucester

Harlequins vs Sale Sharks

Newcastle Falcons vs Northampton Saints

Wasps vs London Irish

Worcester Warriors vs Leicester Tigers

Round 17

Bristol Bears vs Newcastle Falcons

Gloucester vs London Irish

Leicester Tigers vs Harlequins

Northampton Saints vs Bath

Sale Sharks vs Worcester Warriors

Wasps vs Exeter Chiefs

Round 18

Bath vs Exeter Chiefs

London Irish vs Sale Sharks

Newcastle Falcons vs Leicester Tigers

Northampton Saints vs Gloucester

Saracens vs Bristol Bears

Worcester Warriors vs Wasps

Round 19

Exeter Chiefs vs Sale Sharks

Gloucester vs Saracens

Harlequins vs Newcastle Falcons

Leicester Tigers vs Bristol Bears

Wasps vs Bath

Worcester Warriors vs Northampton Saints

Round 20

Bath vs London Irish

Bristol Bears vs Northampton Saints

Harlequins vs Worcester Warriors

Leicester Tigers vs Exeter Chiefs

Newcastle Falcons vs Gloucester

Sale Sharks vs Saracens

Round 21

Exeter Chiefs vs Bristol Bears

Gloucester vs Harlequins

London Irish vs Leicester Tigers

Northampton Saints vs Wasps

Sale Sharks vs Bath

Saracens vs Worcester Warriors

Round 22

Bristol Bears vs Sale Sharks

Harlequins vs Exeter Chiefs

Leicester Tigers vs Bath

Newcastle Falcons vs London Irish

Wasps vs Saracens

Worcester Warriors vs Gloucester

*Worcester Warriors and Gloucester meet in the M5 derby in Round 22*

Round 23

Bath vs Bristol Bears

Exeter Chiefs vs Newcastle Falcons

Gloucester vs Leicester Tigers

London Irish vs Northampton Saints

Sale Sharks vs Wasps

Saracens vs Harlequins

Round 24

Bristol Bears vs Harlequins

Leicester Tigers vs Saracens

London Irish vs Exeter Chiefs

Newcastle Falcons vs Worcester Warriors

Northampton Saints vs Sale Sharks

Wasps vs Gloucester

*This year’s finalists Leicester and Saracens will* *meet in the third from last round of the season, in a game which could be critical for both sides’ play-off hopes*

Round 25

Exeter Chiefs vs Northampton Saints

Gloucester vs Sale Sharks

Harlequins vs Bath

Newcastle Falcons vs Wasps

Saracens vs London Irish

Worcester Warriors vs Bristol Bears

Round 26

Bath vs Worcester Warriors

Bristol Bears vs Gloucester

London Irish vs Harlequins

Northampton Saints vs Saracens

Sale Sharks vs Newcastle Falcons

Wasps vs Leicester Tigers

Sale Sharks centre Sam James — *The league’s two most northerly sides, Sale Sharks and Newcastle Falcons*, *meet on the final day*

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