How things stand after 11 Premiership rounds as Round 12 looms

The 2021-22 Premiership is now 11 rounds old and, remarkably, the competition’s leaders, Lecester Tigers, boast an unbeaten record, leading the pack with a total of 42 log points.  

They did, however, very nearly find themselves the victims of a Bristol Bears revival this last weekend when the latter came within a hair’s breadth of toppling the comp leaders in a thrilling contest going down to the wire at Ashton Gate. 

Despite the nail-biting nature of the game’s conclusion, Leicester’s star flyhalf George Ford felt that their opportunity to take victory was always only a matter of time in coming. 

“Most things didn’t go our way today, but all you need is one opportunity to score and win, whether that is with 20 minutes left or in the last play, that is the game,” Ford said post-match. 

“I always felt we had one opportunity. The talk on the field was ‘All we need is one opportunity’. 

“One minute we are down in our half defending, but the ability to stay in the game and have that one opportunity and to execute was great.” 

It was the second consecutive weekend that the Tigers have enjoyed a 2-point victory, as they put a spirited Harlequins down 16-14 on 5 December, before the opening two rounds of the Champions Cup. The recent narrow victories may be indicative of the fact that the team has reached a state of mind whereby they have forgotten how to lose. While on such a streak of victories, however, the pressure grows week in and week out. How long they are able to sustain it is an interesting question which will be keenly observed by many. In Round 12, they meet Newcastle Falcons at Welford Road.  

Behind the rampant Tigers, in second place, lie Mark McCall’s Saracens, who have 7 victories to their name from their 10 outings and a total of 33 log points.  

Saracens started well with a convincing victory over Bristol Bears in the opening game of the competition before falling to Leicester in their second fixture in Round 3. thereafter, in Rounds 5 and 6, they set down a marker with crushing wins over Bath (71-17) and Wasps (56-15). Their only loss since then has been to Exeter Chiefs (Round 9) although they were also forced into a draw against a spirited London Irish side. This weekend, they take on a wounded Northampton Saints at Franklin’s Gardens.  

Third place on the log belongs to defending champions Harlequins – who are tied with Gloucester on overall points (31) - only claiming authority over George Skivington’s men on points difference. Naturally, expectations were high coming into this season and Quins have displayed a stout effort thus far with six wins from ten outings. Last weekend, they brushed aside Saints (41-27).  

The competition is still young and Quins will no doubt remain a strong force going forward. Much is being said, in particular, about their 8,9, 10 combination of Alex Dombrandt, Danny Care and Marcus Smith – an exciting trio which is growing in confidence and ability every week. This week, Quins tackle their immediate log rivals in what is sure to be great contest. The Cherry & Whites will be eager to leapfrog their rivals on the overall standings, but will have to dig deep to do so. 

The mid-table is currently occupied by Exeter, Northampton, London Irish and Wasps. Exeter are set to face Bristol Bears at Sandy Park. Bears have a long way to climb after what has hitherto been a very disappointing season, and a fixture at Sandy Park is never an easy one. They will hope to carry some momentum from their previous game when they nearly toppled the log-leaders. 

Saints also face a tough ask this weekend and will be grateful for home-ground advantage when they host Saracens. 

The Exiles will fancy their chances against the struggling Bath in the final fixture of the Round while Wasps tackle the challenge of Sale Sharks.   

At the bottom of the table, Sale, Worcester, Bristol and Bath battle it out.