The Gallagher Prem will kickoff on a Thursday night this season, and it looks as close as ever. Newcastle are now ready to compete and there have been some star signings across the league. Can anyone catch Bath?
10th: Newcastle Red Bulls
The takeover by Red Bull has re-energised Newcastle, and has allowed the club to make some big signings. However, he takeover didn't happen in time to prevent Ben Redshaw, Adam Radwan, Callum Chick, Max Pepper and Jamie Blamire all leaving the club since the start of last season. I expect Newcastle to improve, but they are going to have to deal with years of erosion and that is going to take some time.
9th: Exeter Cheifs
I didn't want to put Exeter here. I like a lot of their transfer business. Their pack is strong, and their back line is deadly, but I simply cannot overlook their lack of good half backs. Feyi-Waboso, Brown-Bampoe and Hodge are a great trio at the back which will be well-supported by a test-level partnership between Henry Slade and Len Ikitau. Their pack has plenty of depth and some internationals so this team is, on paper, well-equipped to be better than last season. However, I foresee this team losing a lot of close games due to not having the ability to manage tight situations at the end of games.
8th: Harlequins
I think this will be a frustrating season for the West-Londoners. Their star power is undeniable, but I am still not convinced that they have adequately replaced some stars that have departed in recent seasons. Their Achilles heel in recent times has been consistency. That isn't a surprise when you take into account their playing style. Marcus Smith is the team's talisman and his style of play is incredibly unique and often unstructured.
That way can work wonders but can also put his team on the back foot. One way to mitigate that danger is to have a dominant pack and impressive carrying game. That's why the losses of Will Collier and Andre Esterhuizen have been felt so painfully. Collier was a key pillar of the Harlequins set piece before leaving last summer and Esterhuizen was the central figure of their carrying game that created space for Smith to operate. Harlequins will have to hope that the signing of Harry Williams can finally mitigate the loss of Collier and that Luke Northmore can take another step forward to replace the departed Springbok.
Harlequins will also have to deal with losing their head coach, Danny WIlson, just a week before the season starts. He has joined the Wales coaching staff instead. Wilson was far from universally popular at the club so some will not see this as a bad thing, but the instability this situation creates will lead to some added adversity before a ball is even kicked.
7th: Gloucester
This would be a disappointing season for Gloucester but it's difficult to identify areas in which they have a significant advantage over their opposition. There have been some smart additions, such as: Ross Byrne, Ben Loader and Nepo Laulala. However, there have been some big losses like: Gareth Anscombe, Santi Carreras and Christian Wade. Gloucester can take a big step forward, if their young players continue to improve in the way that they have up to this point, but that is by no means guaranteed. The loss of Santi Carreras will be particularly painful, and not just because of where he went, and he'll be tricky to replace at fullback. Ben Loader will be under a lot of pressure to be the X-factor player that replaces both Carreras and Wade. Their style of play is good to watch but they are at risk of being beaten up in the pack against the top teams. They don't spend up to the salary cap and have, as a result, lost some important squad players like Chris Harris and Freddie Clarke. Injuries will affect them more than they will any other team.
6th:Leicester Tigers
This has been a summer of seismic changes at Leicester. The head coach and captain have both left, as well as most of the team's most decorated veterans. Julian Montoya, Handre Pollard, Dan Cole and Ben Youngs. The club have hired a familiar, but inexperienced, face to be their new head coach. Geoff Parling has spent time as a part of the Wallabies coaching staff, which is why he joined the club late, and is an exciting addition that will need to be given time. Each of his 3 predecessors have left the club after a shorter spell than many would have liked.
Leicester have also brought in a lot of new players, Jamie Blamire is a proven player at this level, who is a decent replacement for Julian Montoya. Tong Kofe is a man mountain, which is what was needed to replace Dan Cole. Those are important additions, but the biggest one is the signing of James O'Connor. The Wallaby is currently away with his national team to play in the Bledisloe Cup so his arrival will also have to be managed mid-way through the season. Another new signing, Orlando Bailey, will have to step up in the meantime. If Leicester can gel properly, they will be a formidable opponent, but time is not on their side.
5th: Sale Sharks
This was the hardest decision to make in this list. Given their recent success, and current squad, it is almost unconscionable for them to miss the top 4 - almost. The only worry I have about Sale is their lack of depth in the 2nd row. New team captain, Ernst van Rhyn, will be under a lot of pressure to deliver this season. Ben Bamber will play pretty much every game for which he is available, and Tom Burrow will have to step up massively at just 20-years-old. Just one injury could plunge this unit into difficulty. That would be particularly damaging to Sale given their style of play which is about grinding down the opposition and winning the battle at the gain-line.
4th: Bristol Bears
Bristol have made some splash signings this off-season. Tom Jordan and Louis Rees-Zammit headline that list. Jordan can play fly half instead of MacGinty but could find more game time at fullback where he is also comfortable. A back 3 of Rees-Zammit, Jordan and Ibitoye with a centre partnership of Janse van Rensburg and Ravouvou will be appointment viewing every week. Bristol also have a strong pack, led by Ellis Genge, that gives the team the platform to open up and use their star quality.
3rd: Northampton Saints
This will be a bounce-back season for Northampton. After winning the league in 2024, they failed to get anything going on the domestic front last season. What will give the team hope, is their run to the final of the Champions Cup. That run tells us something that anyone could discern from just looking at their squad - the Northampton Saints are a good rugby team. This season will be a challenge with all the players that played for the Lions needing to be manages, but they can work through that and go on a run towards the end of the season if necessary. This could also be the last season that this squad is so strong given who is out of contract at the end of this season, so they better make this one count. Additions like Callum Chick and Danilo FIschetti will help them to do that.
2nd: Saracens
The success of Saracens comes down to a singular variable - the performance of Owen Farrell. If he is able to bounce back from a tricky year in France, Farrell can lead this team to great things, Their back five is full of players that could walk into most teams in the World. Their prop situation has been their Achilles heel in recent years, but Carre and Riccioni should help to stabilise that situation with more time together. The back line is not as attention-grabbing as Bristol's or Bath's, but it is well-balanced and still contains some test stars amongst some exciting young players.
1st: Bath
This was an easy pick. Bath were the best team throughout last season and won the final without playing their best. The year before saw them make the final as well and no backwards step has been taken so one must assume that they will be there again. Winning 3 trophies then adding Henry Arundell and Santi Carreras is a situation that the other Prem teams could only dream of. I can't see anyone overtaking this team this season.
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