PREM: Round 5 Team News - Ellis Genge starts for Bristol in West Country derby

Saturday serves up a feast — Harlequins celebrate Tyrone Green’s 100th game against Newcastle, Exeter face Gloucester at Sandy Park, and Bath welcome Bristol in a fiery West Country derby featuring Ellis Genge’s return. Leicester and Sale then close the weekend in a heavyweight rematch of last season's semi-final.

Northampton Saints welcome back George Hendy for Friday night’s sold-out clash with Saracens at Franklin’s Gardens. Hendy, who limped off against Leicester earlier this month with a shin problem, is fit to start at full-back, pushing Tommy Freeman to the wing and Tom Litchfield to the bench.

Fraser Dingwall captains the side on his 150th appearance, while Henry Pollock earns his first start of the season at No.8, giving regular skipper Callum Chick a rest. Tom Pearson returns, Alex Coles moves to blindside for his 100th Saints outing, and Trevor Davison marks his 100th Premiership appearance.

Saracens, meanwhile, tweak their lineup after last week’s dominant win over Sale. Theo Dan replaces Jamie George at hooker, Andy Onyeama-Christie steps in for Ben Earl, and Jack Bracken starts on the wing. Their bench features heavy hitters including Earl, Nick Isiekwe, and Theo McFarland.

NORTHAMPTON SAINTS STARTING XV:
15 George Hendy, 14 Tommy Freeman, 13 Rory Hutchinson, 12 Fraser Dingwall (c), 11 Edoardo Todaro, 10 Fin Smith, 9 Alex Mitchell; 1 Danilo Fischetti, 2 Robbie Smith, 3 Trevor Davison, 4 Tom Lockett, 5 JJ Van Der Mescht6. Alex Coles, 7 Tom Pearson, 8 Henry Pollock

REPLACEMENTS:
16 Craig Wright, 17 Emmanuel Iyogun, 18 Luke Green, 19 Ed Prowse, 20 Callum Chick, 21 Archie McParland, 22 Anthony Belleau, 23 Tom Litchfield

SARACENS STARTING XV:
15 Max Malins, 14 Noah Caluori, 13 Nick Tompkins, 12 Owen Farrell, 11 Jack Bracken; 10 Fergus Burke, 9 Charlie Bracken; 1 Eroni Mawi, 2 Theo Dan, 3 Marco Riccioni, 4 Maro Itoje (c), 5 Hugh Tizard; 6 Juan Martin Gonzalez, 7 Andy Onyeama-Christie, 8 Tom Willis.

REPLACEMENTS:
16 James Hadfield, 17 Rhys Carre, 18 Marcus Street, 19 Nick Isiekwe, 20 Theo McFarland, 21 Ben Earl, 22 Gareth Simpson, 23 Angus Hall.

Harlequins mark a milestone this weekend as Tyrone Green makes his 100th appearance for the club, starting at full-back against Newcastle Red Bulls. Green, who debuted in 2020, has been in electric form this season, leading the Premiership for metres made.

Head coach Jason Gilmore makes two changes: Zach Carr earns his first Premiership start at No.8, replacing the injured Chandler Cunningham-South, while Jarrod Evans comes in at inside centre alongside Luke Northmore. Veteran Joe Launchbury returns to the matchday squad, joined by young talents Cassius Cleaves and Max Green.

For Newcastle, Stefan Coetzee is rewarded with his first start after scoring with his very first touch on debut last week. Elliott Obatoyinbo returns from a head knock, while Liam Williams and Boeta Chamberlain miss out through injury. Nathan Greenwood could make his Premiership debut as the Red Bulls chase their first league win under Alan Dickens.

HARLEQUINS STARTING XV:
15 Tyrone Green, 14 Rodrigo Isgró, 13 Luke Northmore, 12 Jamie Benson, 11 Cadan Murley (c), 10 Marcus Smith, 9 Will Porter, 1 Fin Baxter, 2 Jack Walker, 3 Harry Williams, 4 Guido Petti Pagadizábal, 5 Stephan Lewies, 6 Jack Kenningham, 7 Will Evans, 8 Zach Carr

REPLACEMENTS:
16 George Turner, 17 Boris Wenger, 18 Pedro Delgado, 19 Joe Launchbury, 20 Jonny Green, 21 Max Green, 22 Jamie Benson, 23 Cassius Cleaves

NEWCASTLE RED BULLS STARTING XV:
15 Stefan Coetzee, 14 Elliott Obatoyinbo, 13 Oli Spencer, 12 Max Clark, 11 Alex Hearle, 10 Brett Connon, 9 Simón Benítez Cruz; 1 Adam Brocklebank, 2 George McGuigan (c), 3 Richard Palframan, 4 Jamie Hodgson, 5 Freddie Clarke, 6 Fergus Lee-Warner, 7 Tom Gordon, 8 Amanaki Mafi.

REPLACEMENTS:
16 Ollie Fletcher, 17 Murray McCallum, 18 Luan de Bruin, 19 Oscar Usher, 20 Freddie Lockwood, 21 James Elliott, 22 Ollie Leatherbarrow, 23 Nathan Greenwood

Exeter Chiefs welcome Gloucester Rugby to Sandy Park on Saturday, looking to build on last week’s emphatic 38-0 win over Harlequins. Scott Sio makes his first appearance of the season after recovering from injury, joining Joseph Dweba and Josh Iosefa-Scott in the front row. Dafydd Jenkins again captains the side, partnering Rusi Tuima in the second row, while Tom Hooper keeps his place in the back row after an impressive debut.

Henry Slade and Len Ikitau link up in midfield once more, with Olly Woodburn, Immanuel Feyi-Waboso and Josh Hodge completing a potent backline.

In contrast, Gloucester arrive injury-hit and still searching for their first win of the campaign. Nepo Laulala returns to strengthen the pack, while Tomos Williams captains from scrum-half. Ben Redshaw makes his club debut on the wing, and academy product Jack Cotgreave earns his first Premiership outing of the season as the Cherry and Whites look to turn their luck around.

EXETER CHIEFS STARTING XV:
15 Josh Hodge, 14 Immanuel Feyi-Waboso, 13 Henry Slade, 12 Len Ikitau, 11 Olly Woodburn, 10 Harvey Skinner, 9 Stephen Varney, 1 Scott Sio, 2 Joseph Dweba, 3 Josh Iosefa-Scott, 4 Dafydd Jenkins (c), 5 Rusi Tuima, 6 Tom Hooper, 7 Ethan Roots, 8 Greg Fisilau

REPLACEMENTS:
16 Jack Yeandle, 17 Ethan Burger, 18 Bachuki Tchumbadze, 19 Andrea Zambonin, 20 Kane James, 21 Charlie Chapman, 22 Will Haydon-Wood, 23 Ben Hammersley

GLOUCESTER STARTING XV:
15 Charlie Atkinson, 14 Ben Redshaw, 13 Will Joseph, 12 Max Llewellyn, 11 Jack Cotgreave, 10 Ross Byrne, 9 Tomos Williams (c); 1 Ciaran Knight, 2 Seb Blake, 3 Nepo Laulala, 4 Freddie Thomas, 5 Matias Alemanno, 6 Josh Basham, 7 James Venter, 8 Hugh Bokenham

REPLACEMENTS:
16 Jack Innard, 17 Dian Bleuler, 18 Afo Fasogbon, 19 Cam Jordan, 20 Jack Mann, 21 Caolan Englefield, 22 George Barton, 23 Will Knight

Bath and Bristol Bears face off in a mouth-watering West Country derby on Saturday, the final Gallagher Premiership clash before the autumn break. Bath, sitting third, make minimal changes after their narrow loss to Leicester. Tom Dunn, fresh from his 250th club appearance, anchors the front row alongside Beno Obano and Thomas du Toit.

Ben Spencer and Finn Russell steer the attack, with Cameron Redpath and Ollie Lawrence in midfield and a back three featuring Henry Arundell, Joe Cokanasiga, and Santi Carreras. A powerful bench includes Sam Underhill and Alfie Barbeary in a 6–2 split.

Bristol, just a point behind in fourth, make three changes. Ellis Genge and Jack Bates return to the starting XV, while Santiago Grondona replaces the injured Steven Luatua. Joe Batley partners Pedro Rubiolo in the second row, and young fly-half Sam Worsley retains the No.10 shirt after his record-breaking haul last week.

BRISTOL BEARS STARTING XV:
15 Benjamin Elizalde, 14 Jack Bates, 13 Matias Moroni, 12 Benhard Janse van Rensburg, 11 Kalaveti Ravouvou, 10 Sam Worsley, 9 Kieran Marmion; 1 Ellis Genge, 2 Gabriel Oghre, 3 George Kloska, 4 Pedro Rubiolo, 5 Joe Batley, 6 Santiago Grondona, 7 Fitz Harding (c), 8 Viliame Mata

REPLACEMENTS:
16 Harry Thacker, 17 Jake Woolmore, 18 Lovejoy Chawatama, 19 Joe Owen, 20 Ben Grondona, 21 Oscar Lennon, 22 Josh Carrington, 23 Toby Fricker

BATH STARTING XV:
15 Santi Carreras, 14 Joe Cokanasiga, 13 Ollie Lawrence, 12 Cameron Redpath, 11 Henry Arundell, 10 Finn Russell, 9 Ben Spencer (c) ; 1 Beno Obano, 2 Tom Dunn, 3 Thomas du Toit, 4 Quinn Roux, 5 Ross Molony, 6 Josh Bayliss, 7 Guy Pepper, 8 Miles Reid

REPLACEMENTS:
16 Kepueli Tuipulotu, 17 Francois van Wyk, 18 Will Stuart, 19 Ewan Richards, 20 Sam Underhill, 21 Tom Carr-Smith, 22 Max Ojomoh, 23 Alfie Barbeary

Round 5 wraps up with a heavyweight clash at Mattioli Woods Welford Road, as Leicester Tigers host Sale Sharks in a rematch of last season’s semi-final. Tigers edged that one 21-16 and will be eager to back up last week’s dramatic win over Bath. Their only change sees Izaia Perese handed his first start, replacing Joe Woodward in the backline.

Sale, meanwhile, arrive looking to bounce back after their bruising defeat to Saracens. Alex Sanderson makes four changes, with Jacques Vermeulen and Rekeiti Ma’asi-White returning from injury, Luke James starting at full-back, and James Harper coming in at tighthead. Asher Opoku-Fordjour shifts to loosehead, while captain Ernst van Rhyn moves into the second row.

England fly-half George Ford again pulls the strings, with Tom O’Flaherty and Tom Roebuck on the wings. Dan du Preez returns from injury to bolster a young, dynamic bench.

LEICESTER TIGERS STARTING XV:
15 Freddie Steward, 14 Adam Radwan, 13 Izaia Perese, 12 Solomone Kata, 11 Ollie Hassell-Collins, 10 James O’Connor, 9 Tom Whiteley; 1 Nicky Smith, 2 Jamie Blamire, 3 Joe Heyes, 4 Cameron Henderson, 5 Ollie Chessum (c), 6 Hanro Liebenberg, 7 Tommy Reffell, 8 Olly Cracknell

REPLACEMENTS:
16 Charlie Clare, 17 Tarek Haffar, 18 Will Hurd, 19 Harry Wells, 20 Emeka Ilione, 21 Ollie Allan, 22 Billy Searle, 23 Orlando Bailey

SALE SHARKS STARTING XV:
15 Luke James, 14 Tom Roebuck, 13 Rob du Preez, 12 Rekeiti Ma’asi-White, 11 Tom O’Flaherty, 10 George Ford, 9 Gus Warr; 1 Asher Opoku-Fordjour, 2 Luke Cowan-Dickie, 3 James Harper, 4 Ernst van Rhyn (c), 5 Ben Bamber, 6 Jacques Vermeulen, 7 Tristan Woodman, 8 Sam Dugdale

REPLACEMENTS:
16 Nathan Jibulu, 17 Tumy Onasanya, 18 Patreece Bell, 19 Tom Burrow, 20 Dan du Preez, 21 Raffi Quirke, 22 Marius Louw, 23 Arron Reed