Thoughts on the 2022-23 Season
The sixth season of the (Allianz) Premier 15s league was always going to be dramatic, but few could have imagined how earth-shaking.
The end of the second 3-year-block would see a review of the ten clubs’ performances, with the unavoidable possibility of one or two repeating the demise of Richmond and Firwood Waterloo in 2020.
Once more the axe fell on two distinguished clubs, DMP Sharks and Wasps. The move was met with horror and disbelief in many quarters, but not at Twickenham Towers, where expressions of sympathy and sorrow are not deemed necessary.
It was more positive seeing the two strongest clubs, Saracens and Harlequins, at last failing to make the knock-out final. Sad as it must have been for them, it was vital for the league to prove it was not a two-horse race, especially one limited to London.
In their place Gloucester-Hartpury and Exeter Chiefs paraded at a well-filled Kingsholm (9,668), and the home side exploited its favoured position to romp home 34-19.
Here’s reminder of the end-of-season table:
Table P W L D Pts
Gloucester-H 18 16 2 0 79
Exeter 18 15 3 0 78
Saracens 18 15 3 0 75
Bristol 18 12 6 0 62
Harlequins 18 10 7 1 55
UWW 18 7 10 1 38
Sale 18 7 11 0 35
Lightning 18 5 13 0 30
DMPS 18 2 16 0 10
Wasps 18 0 18 0 2
Points of interest
1. Glos-Pury top for the first time.
2. Exeter fast becoming the eternal bridesmaids: a second final, a second loss.
3. Sarries not the force they were. They show every intention of avoiding a repeat of that third place.
4. The sizeable gap between third and fourth. But Bristol are rapidly acquiring the reputation of the most ambitious of the ten clubs. They have made it plain they intend altering trends next season. An early prediction: they’ll finish very near the top.
5. The continuing descent of Quins. Despite a change of head coach they finish in their lowest ever position in the Prem 15s.
6. The second unwelcome gap, between them and Worcester, 12 points; but UWW’s position is their best ever. With all the rumpus concerning the Warriors club throughout the season, it’s easy to forget that it took the women’s section nearly two years to achieve their first victory. For them to win six games and finish sixth speaks volumes for the staff, especially Jo Yapp, and the players. It’s a stark reminder of the yawning gaps between clubs in their financial backing and general wellbeing.
7. Sale too did well to gain their 35 points. But it needed the infusion of many overseas and Celtic players to finish seventh. That was not the original target when they gained admission three years ago. Developing local talent to the required standard is proving difficult.
8. Lightning are the club I worry about. At the time of writing, 29 July, they have lost a number of leading players and gained none. Nathan Smith has been appointed the new head coach. They will be living a double life between their native heath, Loughborough University, and Franklin’s Gardens, 38 miles south. I’m not sure that makes life simpler for them. Why have Northampton Saints not entered the transfer market the way Leicester Tigers have for their new women’s section?
9. As we bid farewell to DMP and Wasps, I might as well repeat my wailing about Waterloo and Richmond three years ago. What is so disturbing about the disappearance of these four clubs is the speed with which they have dissolved and the lack of sympathy shown by the decision- makers.
There is a yawning gap between the bright optimism of the RFU as it announces huge financial backing for the league and the ease with which the four can walk the plank. There is no Intensive Care Unit in women’s rugby as there is in men’s. The machine is switched off.
10. While the exact make-up of most clubs remains in doubt, Quins’ signing of thirteen young players inside 24 hours is a sign of future trends. Clubs are hedging their bets about a reliance on overseas players to bring home the bacon.
11. Now we have a brand-new name, Premiership Women’s Rugby (PWR), a beautiful new logo and a ten-year structure. It remains to be seen how soon a further adjustment will be required before we reach 2033.
One of the RFU’s many slogans is ‘Play together, stay together.’ One result, Bristol Bears 115 DMP 0, shows a different reality.
