Saints and Chiefs headline Gallagher PREM semifinal Team of the week

For the seventh consecutive season, there will be no back-to-back Gallagher PREM champions, with Northampton Saints and Exeter Chiefs set to decide the title at Allianz Stadium, Twickenham on June 20.

After a semifinal weekend loaded with rivalry, momentum swings and late drama, the final is now set. First came Friday night at Franklin’s Gardens, where Northampton and Leicester traded blows in a Midlands derby that delivered 12 tries and barely paused for breath. It was only in the 74th minute that Saints finally broke clear, with captain George Furbank racing away for the score that put the contest beyond Leicester.

The second semifinal had a different rhythm but no shortage of theatre. At the Rec, Exeter Chiefs stunned the reigning champions on their own patch, holding up Bath replacement tighthead Vilikesa Sela at the death to secure their place in the final.

Fixture

Gallagher Premiership

Northampton

45 - 31

Full-time

Leicester

All Stats and Data

Rob Baxter’s side had trailed by 16 points at half-time, but they worked their way back into the contest with impressive control. Bit by bit, they pulled apart Bath’s defensive system, took the lead in the 67th minute through replacement hooker Ethan Burger, then showed the composure required to close out a major away win.

It was another weekend that underlined why the PREM is being spoken about as a competition in a golden period for player quality. Across both semifinals, several players delivered performances worthy of the biggest stage.

Here is our Gallagher PREM team of the week for the semifinals.

1. Beno Obano – Bath Rugby
Bath may have fallen short, but Obano gave Exeter’s front row a long afternoon. The loosehead made his mark early, driving over from close range underneath Wallaby backrow Tom Hooper for the opening try in the 11th minute. From there, Obano continued to cause Josh Iosefa-Scott problems at scrum time and gave Bath a strong platform during their best spell of the match. He departed in the 58th minute having made 12 tackles and 8 carries, and the drop-off in Bath’s pack was noticeable once their starting forwards left the field.

2. Max Norey – Exeter Chiefs
Exeter Hooker Norey avoided a severe examination at line-out time, but his best work came away from the set piece. He would get through 17 tackles, added 4 carries and produced an industrious showing around the breakdown. Tom Dunn also had a strong case for selection after another influential performance for Bath, but Norey just edges the shirt after playing his part in Exeter’s comeback victory.

3. Thomas du Toit – Bath Rugby
Bar none Thomas du Toit has been the best player in the Gallagher PREM this season, and his departure will be a significant blow to Bath. The Springbok tighthead was central to Bath’s first-half dominance, helping disintegrate an Exeter scrum in the build-up to the opening try and laying the foundation for the hosts to build a commanding lead. He finished with 15 tackles, 6 carries and a try, leaving the field knowing he could hardly have done more to drag Bath back to the final.

4. George Martin – Leicester Tigers
Getting back to his very best, Tigers’ powerhouse George Martin delivered a timely reminder of what he brings when fully fit and firing. Martin battered into Northampton on Friday night, producing the kind of abrasive semifinal performance that suited the occasion with shades of his 2023 Rugby World Cup semifinal performance. Martin made 16 tackles, including 2 dominant hits, won a pair of line-outs and topped Leicester’s carry count with 13. The Saracens-bound forward was central to an excellent head-to-head with Alex Coles, who was also close to making this side.

5. Andrea Zambonin – Exeter Chiefs
Producing one of the defining interventions of Exeter’s semifinal win. With Bath in the ascendancy, the Italian international picked off an intercept inside his own 22 to kill off what could have become a decisive score. That moment mattered, but his wider contribution was just as important. Zambonin ruled the skies for Exeter with 6 line-outs won and backed it up with 16 tackles in a performance full of graft and timing.

Fixture

Gallagher Premiership

Bath

26 - 27

Full-time

Exeter Chiefs

All Stats and Data

6. Tom Hooper – Exeter Chiefs
Edging out his countryman Josh Kemeny and South African Hanro Liebenberg after a relentless defensive performance at the Rec. The Wallaby forward was a constant nuisance for Bath, completing 29 tackles, winning a key turnover and adding a dozen carries. In a match where Exeter needed their back row to absorb pressure and keep coming forward, Hooper delivered exactly that.

7. Christ Tshiunza – Exeter Chiefs
Putting on a clinic, Tshiunza showed his full range of his game in Exeter’s win over Bath. His try in the 24th minute was one of the standout moments of the weekend, as he stepped the Bath cover defence before finishing with a spectacular swan dive. Still only 24, Tshiunza looks to be building back towards his best after a consistent run in his favoured position. On this evidence, the Welsh coaching staff will have plenty to consider this summer.

8. Greg Fisilau – Exeter Chiefs
This was the most contentious selection of the weekend, given how impressive Henry Pollock was for Northampton. Even so, Greg Fisilau’s output in a major Exeter upset was impossible to ignore. Fisilau made 35 tackles, carried 15 times and scored a try as the Chiefs fought their way back from a 16-point half-time deficit. Against an ultra-physical Bath pack, the Plymouth-born back row put himself in the middle of everything.

9. Archie McParland – Northampton Saints
Losing Alex Mitchell would be a major blow for any side, but Archie McParland has handled the responsibility with impressive maturity. With Mitchell injured during England training camp, the spotlight shifted onto the 21-year-old scrum-half, and he responded again in the biggest match of Northampton’s season. McParland’s 78-minute effort brought his 14th try of the campaign, but the greater value came in his speed of pass, kicking game and ability to keep the Saints attack moving. His performance also gave Fin Smith the clean service and field position required to control the contest.

10. Fin Smith – Northampton Saints
Another of the Northampton standouts, Smith will have done his England prospects no harm ahead of the July 4 meeting with the reigning world champions at Ellis Park. His 18th-minute break and perfectly weighted grubber for Tommy Freeman’s try was the clearest example of his ability to bring Northampton’s game-breakers into the contest. By full-time, Smith had been named player of the match after a performance full of control, timing and attacking clarity.

11. Ollie Hassell-Collins – Leicester Tigers
Highly effective in defeat, scoring twice and making the most of limited opportunities. His first try was a tidy finish, while his wider numbers underlined his threat. From 5 carries, he made 43 metres, beat 3 defenders and created a line-break. In a crowded English back-three picture, Hassell-Collins again showed he remains among the top tier.

12. Len Ikitau – Exeter Chiefs
The heartbeat of Exeter’s comeback. The Wallaby centre did the hard yards with ball in hand and helped shut down Bath’s ability to move the ball into the wider channels. Against the tried and tested Bath partnership of Max Ojomoh and Ollie Lawrence, the Exeter pairing of Ikitau and Henry Slade came out on top. Ikitau’s defensive presence and composure in possession were central to that outcome.

13. Tom Litchfield – Northampton Saints
Litchfield lit up Franklin’s Gardens with a hat-trick, including a superb first effort built on a sharp dummy and race to the line. Already named Saints’ player of the season, the 24-year-old justified the selection call that saw him partnered with Rory Hutchinson ahead of England regular Fraser Dingwall. Once again, Phil Dowson and Sam Vesty were rewarded for a bold decision, with Litchfield repaying their faith in full.

14. Tommy Freeman – Northampton Saints
Every time Tommy Freeman got near the ball, Franklin’s Gardens seemed to sense something was coming. That is the level of expectation the 25-year-old has created over the past seven seasons. Freeman scored one try, created another, beat 4 defenders, produced 3 offloads, made 2 line-breaks and finished with 49 metres. For most players, that would be a headline performance. For Freeman, it has started to feel like the standard. Of all the selections this week, his was the clearest.

15. George Furbank – Northampton Saints
A performance to mark what was effectively his exit interview from the ground he has called home for the past 11 seasons. The Northampton captain scored twice, led from the front and fizzed with intent whenever he carried. In his head-to-head with Freddie Steward, Furbank also laid down a clear marker to the England selectors. For one of Saints’ modern greats, it was another big performance on a big night.