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Analysis: What's happened in the 2025/26 PWR season so far?
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Analysis: What's happened in the 2025/26 PWR season so far?
Premiership Women’s Rugby (PWR) has played eight rounds of the regular season so far but some fans may be wondering why there are no fixtures until 30th January. The top-flight last had a round of matches on the weekend of 20/21 December.
The league began on 24th October just under a month after the end of the Rugby World Cup, which was hosted and won by England. It is because of that competition that the break is now taking place in January. The league wanted to give the World Cup stars a break after heading straight into the domestic season after the tournament, a decision taken in order to capitalise on the success of the World Cup.
The league itself has confirmed to RugbyPass that this break will not be in the PWR schedule next season. That is because there is no need for the break with no World Cup in the summer slot.
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The break in fixtures though does allow for supporters to take stock of the season so far with some surprising twists and turns already having taken place. That includes shock signings, unexpected poor form for some clubs and some sensational tries. Here’s a roundup of what’s happened so far.
When the action does return, the three-time defending champions Gloucester-Hartpury will have the opportunity to leapfrog Saracens at the top of the table. The chance comes as the team are currently on the same points as the London outfit but have played one less game. The next round is one where Saracens, who have lost one game this season so far, have a bye-week.
Gloucester are so far unbeaten and if they keep their perfect record when they play Loughborough they will be top of the table.
The battle for top spot is currently between those two clubs but the competition for top four places is far closer. There are only three points between third and sixth with the second half of the season a battleground for four clubs to secure a semi-final spot.
PWR
P
W
L
D
PF
PA
PD
BP T
BP-7
BP
Total
1
Saracens Women
8
7
1
0
35
2
Gloucester-Hartpury Women RFC
7
7
0
0
35
3
Harlequins Women
7
4
3
0
23
4
Exeter Chiefs Women
7
3
2
2
22
5
Loughborough Lightning
7
3
2
2
21
6
Trailfinders Women
7
3
3
1
20
7
Sale Sharks Women
7
1
5
1
12
8
Bristol Bears Women
7
1
6
0
5
9
Leicester Tigers Women
7
0
7
0
1
Gloucester-Hartpury and Saracens have already collated 35 points a piece and so, aside from a complete turn in their form, they are largely safe in their own play-off hopes. That leaves two spots for Harlequins, Exeter Chiefs, Loughborough Lightning and Trailfinders to fight over.
At the other end of the scale Leicester have struggled this season after a whole host of players left the club before this campaign began. Stars like Meg Jones and Amy Cokayne signed for other PWR clubs and the lack of experience at Leicester shows as after seven games they have only managed to win one point and have a negative point difference of 350.
The league does not currently have a relegation and promotion structure and so no matter who ends up at the bottom of the pile, they will have a spot in the PWR next season.
Leicester are not the only club not able to find form this season, it has also been a difficult campaign for Bristol Bears. They have only won one game so far and that came against Leicester in the opening round. Since then they have lost six games on the bounce and will need everything to go their way if they are to have a chance at securing a top four place.
It’s a stark difference from where the west country club was last season. They finished fourth in the regular season, losing their semi-final to Gloucester. Bristol have not failed to make the semi-finals since the 2020/21 campaign, a fact new head coach Scott Lawson will be fretting over.
Aside from Bristol, other clubs are roughly in the same spot now as they were last campaign with Sale Sharks still waiting to hit their straps despite making multiple international signings. In round 9 Bristol and Sale face each other which makes for an intriguing prospect.
One side who have had a slight boost in performances are Harlequins, who currently sit in third, and that is thanks in part to a signing they made in October.
Liana Mikaele-Tu’u has been a spark for Quins. The New Zealand international, who won the World Cup in 2022, has made seven appearances since joining and her stats tell fans the story of her PWR journey. She has only missed four of the 81 tackles she has made, making 72 carries, winning 164 metres and scoring two tries.
However, not all of the star signings in the league have been as successful as Mikaele-Tu’u. Another Black Fern is yet to hit the heights of their hype in Ruahei Demant. The 2022 World Player of the Year admittedly has come into a Bristol team who are struggling but she is yet to leave her unique stamp on the team or the league.
Demant’s Bristol teammate Millie David may not be getting as many try-scoring opportunities, but she continues to shine in the wing shirt.
She is one of the players of the season again after a breakthrough campaign in 2024/25. She is the joint-top try-scorer with six scores and recently told RugbyPass she is using Bristol’s down-tick in form to improve her own game, particularly her defence.
Other stars have impressed in the PWR so far this season. England’s Sadia Kabeya, who was player of the final at the World Cup, has continued her brilliant form to give club Loughborough Lightning some consistency.
Kabeya’s teammate Helen Nelson has also earned her stripes at fly-half, while Gloucester’s Emma Sing continues her prowess from the kicking tee and sits at the top of the points scored list. As previously mentioned, Loughborough face Gloucester-Hartpury when the league kicks off again, a big challenge for the East Midlands side to blow away the Christmas cobwebs.
Supporters can watch these players and the rest of the masses of internationals the league has in its ranks when the competition returns on 30th January. The league will take another break in April and most of May during the Guinness Women’s Six Nations, and will be back on 30th May to play the final two regular season rounds before the semi-finals and final in June.
And while the remainder of the PWR season is slightly start/stop, one thing is for certain: fans will be treated to some fantastic rugby over the next few months.
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