Preview: Premier 15s Semi-Final
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We take a look at how the four Premier 15s semi-finalists match up heading into the end-of-season play-offs.
So here we are, 200 days since the start of the 2022/23 Allianz Premier15s season, with four teams still standing and three matches left to play. One of Gloucester-Hartpury, Exeter Chiefs, Saracens and Bristol Bears will be crowned champions of England at Kingsholm on 24 June, but there are two finely balanced semi-finals to get through first.
Gloucestester-Hartpury will host Bristol Bears at Kingsholm on Saturday, followed by Exeter Chiefs vs Saracens at Sandy Park on Sunday. Both matches kick off at 15:00 BST.
Gloucester-Harpury vs Bristol Bears
● Gloucester-Hartpury have won seven of their last eight Allianz Premier 15s matches against Bristol Bears (L1) including each of their last three, however, their most recent victory against the Bears came by a margin of just two points (19-17 in Round 10).
● Gloucester-Hartpury lost both legs of their tie on the only previous occasion that they reached the semi-finals of the Allianz Premier 15s (v Saracens in 2018), while Bristol Bears will be competing in their second consecutive semi-final, having lost to Exeter Chiefs at this stage last year (24-28).
● Gloucester-Hartpury have lost just two of their last 19 Allianz Premier 15s matches (W17), however, one of those defeats came in their most recent league match (19-58 v Exeter Chiefs) and each of their last two defeats have come at home.
● Bristol Bears have lost just one of their last nine Allianz Premier 15s matches (L1), scoring over 30 points in nine of those games – Bristol have lost just one of their last six away games (W5) after losing five in a row previously.
● Gloucester-Hartpury (28%) and Bristol Bears (27%) have the first and third highest tackle evasion rates of any sides in this season’s Allianz Premier 15s, while Gloucester-Hartpury are also one of just four sides to have crossed the gainline from over 60% of their carries.
● Gloucester-Hartpury have the highest tackle success rate of any side in this season’s Allianz Premier 15s (89%), while 75% of their missed tackles have seen the attacking player subsequentially brought to ground, also the highest rate of any team in the league this term.
● Only Exeter Chiefs have won a greater percentage of their own lineouts (87%) than Bristol Bears (86%) in this season’s Allianz Premier 15s – Bristol Bears also have the second highest scrum success rate of any side in the league this term (94%).
● Bristol Bears’ Lark Davies is the only player to have scored 20+ tries in this season’s Allianz Premier 15s (21) and has scored five tries across her last two matches – Davies also scored a try against Gloucester-Hartpury in her only previous appearance against them this season.
● Bristol Bears’ Rownita Marston is the only player to have made 200+ carries in this season’s Allianz Premier 15s (203), while teammate Ella Lovibond is one of just two players to have registered 1500+ carry metres in the league this term (1726m, also Kate Zackary) and has also made 23 line breaks, the joint-second most of any player (also Claudia MacDonald).
● Gloucester-Hartpury’s Natasha Hunt has provided over twice as many try assists as any other player in this season’s Allianz Premier 15s (26), while Bristol Bears duo Phoebe Murray (24) and Amber Reed (19) have provided more break assist passes than any other players in the league this term.
Exeter Chiefs vs Saracens
● The home team on the day has won each of the previous six Allianz Premier 15s matches between Exeter Chiefs and Saracens, with three wins for each side during that period – Exeter Chiefs and Saracens also met in the final of last year’s competition, with Saracens claiming the trophy on that occasion (43-21).
● Exeter Chiefs will be competing in their second consecutive Allianz Premier 15s semi-final after beating Bristol Bears at this stage last year (28-24), while Saracens have gone on to reach the final on each of the last four occasions that they’re reached this stage.
● Exeter Chiefs have won 15 of their 18 games in this season’s Allianz Premier 15s (L3) including each of their last two by margins of 39+ points and have conceded just seven points or fewer in nine of their games this term.
● Saracens have won each of their last 12 Allianz Premier 15s matches, the longest active streak of any side in the league, scoring 29+ points in each of those matches, however, their most recent defeat came away from home against Exeter Chiefs (19-37 in Round 7).
● Exeter Chiefs have the highest carry dominance (45%) and gainline success (65%) rates of any side in this season’s Allianz Premier 15s, while Saracens have the second highest gainline success rate of any side in the league this term (63%).
● Exeter Chiefs (631m) and Saracens (610m) are the only two sides to have gained 600+ maul metres in this season’s Allianz Premier 15s, while Saracens have also gained the most metres per maul (5.3m) and scored the joint-most maul tries of any side in the league this term (18, also Bristol Bears).
● Saracens have made at least two more offloads per game than any other side in this season’s Allianz Premier 15s (12.8) and also rank first for both kicks in play (18.2) and kicking metres (459m) per game in the league this term.
● Exeter Chiefs trio Kate Zackary (18), Hope Rogers (15) and Maisy Allen (15) are three of just five players to have scored 15+ tries in this season’s Allianz Premier 15s – Zackary has scored at least one try in each of her last four matches (7 in total).
● Exeter Chiefs’ Claudia MacDonald is the only player to have beaten 70+ defenders in this season’s Allianz Premier 15s (71) and also ranks joint-second for line breaks in the league this term (23, also Ella Lovibond).
● No player has won more jackal turnovers than Saracens’ Marlie Packer in this season’s Allianz Premier 15s (16) – Packer has also made the joint-most offloads of any player (29, also Jasmine Hazell), with teammate Sharifa Kasolo having made the third most (27).
