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Leicester Tigers player ratings vs Northampton Saints | Gallagher PREM 2025/26
By Josh Raisey
Leicester Tigers player ratings: Leicester Tigers could only manage a losing bonus point at Franklin’s Gardens on Saturday, as they fell to their rivals Northampton Saints 23-26 in the East Midlands derby.
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This was a match were Leicester held the lead on plenty of occasions, but could not get over the line, with the Saints proving too strong in the final 20 minutes.
Here’s how the players rated:
15 Freddie Steward – 8
Picked a perfect line against a ragged defence to score Leicester’s opener. Imperious under the high ball all afternoon, particularly when chasing Leicester’s own kicks, which gave them a huge territorial advantage at times. Leicester’s best performer.
14 Adam Radwan – 6
Nice penalty won over the ball when Saints were probing early on, and was eager to join the action either side of the ball, anywhere on the pitch.
13 Will Wand – 5
Ran some smart lines off the scrum-half, but the Saints’ defence were able to handle him well.
12 Solomane Kata – 5
Had a tough task defensively marking two shrewd and elusive centres, and though he tried to bring his trademake physicality, he could not impose himself on the game against a Saints backline that was purring at times.
11 Ollie Hassell-Collins – 6
Grew into the game in the second half, chasing kicks well and joining the line – including his break following a strange kick-pass from Billy Searle – but didn’t get the service that his opposing wingers got.
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10 Billy Searle – 7
At times, he could not get the Leicester backline firing slickly, but turned to his boot with some pinpoint tactical kicks, which was noticeably missing once he left the field.
9 Jack van Poortvliet – 6
Wrong-footed by his England rival Mitchell as he broke to create a try when it looked as though he had him marked at the back of a scrum. Picked Steward out for his side’s first try, and his decision-making could not be faulted, but he failed to trouble the Saints during his 55 minutes on the field in the same way Mitchell did.
1 Nicky Smith – 5
Quiet in the loose and unable to gain any real supremacy in the scrum.
2 Jamie Blamire – 5
Some loose carries and his lineout throwing did wobble, but that didn’t deter his enthusiasm to keep coming back.
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3 Will Hurd – 5
Stepped in shortly before kick-off for Joe Heyes and seemed to be in a scrum that was creaking, though it did not result in any penalties in the first half. He was pinged, however, when Danilo Fischetti joined the action.
4 Harry Wells – 6
Strong in contact to score Leicester’s second and give them the lead early in the second half – one of many powerful bursts around the fringes.
5 Ollie Chessum – 6
Kept going throughout the match (except a brief spell on the sidelines) and his output was high, but he is capable of dominating proceedings up front and he failed to do so. Compared to the four Lions on the Saints side, Chessum was the quietest.
6 Hanro Liebenberg – 5
Trapped in an ailing scrum when Mitchell broke down the blindside for the opening try of the match, but can hardly be blamed. Another player who was slightly loose in possession in the opening stages, and was pinged on a couple of occasions (though it is understandable what he was thinking when he pushed Alex Coles when chasing a kick).
7 Tommy Reffell – 5.5
Tried to slow down the Saints as best as he could, and was rewarded with one turnover, but perhaps didn’t make the impact that was needed; but it cannot be a one-man effort. Maybe deserved more from the referee with some of his jackals.
8 Emeka Ilione – 7
First PREM start at No.8 for the 23-year-old and really flourished with the ball in his hands. It was his clean break that laid the platform for the Tigers’ opener (though he opted not to pass, which would have put van Poortvliet in for a try). His ball-carrying impact did wane as the match progressed.
Replacements – 4
Leicester had some real class on the bench, not least with Wallabies fly-half James O’Connor making his debut, but they were outmatched by the Saints bench, who, to a ma,n made a meaningful impact as the hosts pulled away in the final quarter.