2023–24 Premiership Women's Rugby

| top point scorer = Emma Sing (Gloucester-Hartpury) – 125 points | top try scorer = Abby Dow (Trailfinders) – 12 tries | website = www.thepwr.com | prevseason = 2022–23 | nextseason = 2024–25 | teams = 9

The 2023–24 Premiership Women's Rugby is the seventh season of Premiership Women's Rugby, the top-flight domestic women's rugby union club competition in England. Sponsored by Allianz for the fourth consecutive season, it is the first season under the rebranded banner of Premiership Women's Rugby, succeeding six seasons under Premier 15s branding.

Teams and locations In December 2022, the Rugby Football Union (RFU) and Women's Premier 15 Ltd (WP15) confirmed that eight clubs had been offered a place in the 2023–24 season. Four clubs from the 2022–23 season were omitted; DMP Sharks, Sale Sharks Women, University of Worcester Warriors, and Wasps Women. Two new clubs to the competition were named; Trailfinders Women and Leicester Tigers Women.

In February 2023, the RFU confirmed that both Sale Sharks Women and Worcester Warriors Women had been issued with a conditional offer to join the league for the 2023–24 season, bringing the total number of teams to ten.

All nine of the ten teams competing have support from either a professional men's Premiership or Championship side.

On 17 October 2023, the owners of Worcester Warriors Women, Cube International, notified the RFU and PWR that they intended to withdraw Worcester Warriors Women from Premiership Women's Rugby and the Allianz Cup. The regular season games involving Worcester would become bye weekends, and in the Allianz Cup, match results and player scores against Worcester were deleted from record. Before their withdrawal, Worcester were the only independent team in the competition.

Club Head coach Captain(s) Stadium(s) Capacity Location Bristol Bears Women Dave Ward Amber Reed Abbie Ward Shaftesbury Park — Bristol Ashton Gate 27,000 Bristol Exeter Chiefs Women Susie Appleby Poppy Leitch Sandy Park 13,593 Exeter, Devon Gloucester-Hartpury Sean Lynn Zoe Aldcroft Natasha Hunt Hartpury University Stadium 2,000 Hartpury,Gloucestershire Kingsholm 16,115 Gloucester,Gloucestershire Harlequins Women Amy Turner Rachael Burford Twickenham Stoop 14,800 Twickenham,Greater London Leicester Tigers Women Vickey Macqueen Natasha Jones Welford Road 25,849 Leicester,Leicestershire Loughborough Lightning Nathan Smith Rachel Malcolm Franklin's Gardens 14,249 Northampton,Northamptonshire Sale Sharks Women Rachel Taylor Lauren Delany Georgie Perris-Redding Heywood Road 3,387 Sale,Greater Manchester Saracens Women Alex Austerberry Lotte Clapp Marlie Packer StoneX Stadium 10,500 Hendon,Greater London Trailfinders Women Giselle Mather Tyson Beukeboom Trailfinders Sports Ground 4,000 West Ealing, London Worcester Warriors Women Joanne Yapp — Sixways Stadium 11,499 Worcester,Worcestershire

Player movements

Table

Round-by-round progression The grid below shows each team's progression throughout the season, indicating their points total (and league table position) at the end of every round: Team Progression Team R1 R2 R3 R4 R5 R6 R7 R8 R9 R10 R11 R12 R13 R14 R15 R16 R17 R18 0(7th) 5(4th) 9(3rd) 9(4th) 14(4th) 19(3rd) 24(3rd) 29(2nd) 34(2nd) 39(2nd) 49(1st) 54(1st) 59(1st) 64(1st) 69(1st) 74(1st) 76(1st) 76(1st) 5(2nd) 10(1st) 15(1st) 15(1st) 20(1st) 25(1st) 30(1st) 35(1st) 35(1st) 40(1st) 45(2nd) 45(2nd) 50(2nd) 50(2nd) 55(2nd) 60(2nd) 65(2nd) 70(2nd) 5(1st) 5(5th) 5(5th) 10(3rd) 15(3rd) 15(3rd) 15(4th) 20(4th) 25(4th) 30(4th) 31(4th) 36(4th) 41(4th) 46(4th) 46(4th) 51(4th) 56(3rd) 58(3rd) 5(3rd) 10(2nd) 10(2nd) 15(2nd) 17(2nd) 22(2nd) 27(2nd) 28(3rd) 33(3rd) 33(3rd) 38(3rd) 40(3rd) 42(3rd) 47(3rd) 52(3rd) 52(3rd) 52(4th) 57(4th) 0(8th) 0(9th) 5(6th) 5(8th) 10(5th) 10(6th) 11(7th) 16(5th) 21(5th) 21(5th) 22(5th) 22(5th) 27(5th) 27(5th) 28(5th) 33(5th) 37(5th) 38(5th) 1(5th) 1(7th) 1(8th) 6(5th) 6(6th) 11(5th) 11(5th) 13(6th) 13(7th) 13(7th) 13(7th) 18(7th) 18(7th) 23(6th) 23(7th) 23(7th) 24(7th) 29(6th) 4(4th) 6(3rd) 6(4th) 6(6th) 6(7th) 6(6th) 11(6th) 13(7th) 13(6th) 18(6th) 20(6th) 22(6th) 22(6th) 23(7th) 28(6th) 28(6th) 28(6th) 29(7th) 0(9th) 5(6th) 5(7th) 5(7th) 5(8th) 7(7th) 7(8th) 7(8th) 8(8th) 8(9th) 3(9th) 3(9th) 3(9th) 3(9th) 3(9th) 3(9th) 8(9th) 13(8th) 1(6th) 1(8th) 1(9th) 1(9th) 1(9th) 1(9th) 2(9th) 2(9th) 7(9th) 9(8th) 7(9th) 8(8th) 8(8th) 8(8th) 8(8th) 9(8th) 9(8th) 10(9th)Updated: 2 June 2024 Key Win Draw Loss Bye

Regular season The regular season fixtures are due to play out over the course of 18 rounds, with each round consisting of five matches. The fixtures were announced on 9 August 2023. Following the withdrawal of Worcester, fixtures previously involving them would become bye weekends.

Highlights of the season include: SuperPWR Weekend–All four Round 13 fixtures, on the weekend of 1–3 March 2024, were held at main stadiums and broadcast on either TNT Sports or YouTube and TikTok. Women's Slater Cup–Leicester Tigers and Gloucester-Hartpury contested the Slater Cup at Kingsholm on 25 November 2023, and at Welford Road on 3 February 2023, in honour of former Leicester and Gloucester men's player Ed Slater. Big Game 15–Harlequins hosted Gloucester-Hartpury in the season's edition of The Big Game at Twickenham Stadium on 30 December 2023.

Results

Round 1

Round 2

Round 3

Game rescheduled from 2 December 2023 due to a frozen pitch.

Round 4

Game rescheduled from 9 December 2023 due to absent medical cover.

Round 5

Round 6

Round 7

Round 8

Round 9

Round 10

Round 11

Round 12

Round 13

Round 14

Round 15

Round 16

Round 17

Round 18

Play-offs As in previous seasons, the top four teams in the table, following the conclusion of the regular season, contest the play-off semi-finals on 9 June 2024 in a 1st vs 4th and 2nd vs 3rd format, with the higher ranking team having home advantage. The two winners of the semi-finals then meet in the final on 22 June 2024.

On 21 May 2024, it was announced that, as the highest seed, Gloucester-Hartpury would play in the 16:30 semi-final. On 25 May 2024, Saracens were confirmed as the second team to qualify as home semi-finalists.

Semi-finals

Team details FB 15 Jess Breach RW 14 Coreen Grant OC 13 Sydney Gregson IC 12 Sarah McKenna LW 11 Paige Farries FH 10 Zoe Harrison SH 9 Ella Wyrwas N8 8 Poppy Cleall OF 7 Marlie Packer (c) BF 6 Sophie de Goede RL 5 Emma Taylor LL 4 Georgia Evans TP 3 Kelsey Clifford HK 2 May Campbell LP 1 McKinley Hunt Substitutions:HK 16 Bryony Field PR 17 Akina Gondwe PR 18 Donna Rose LK 19 Louise McMillan FL 20 Sharifa Kasolo SH 21 Leanne Infante CE 22 Sophie Bridger WG 23 Lotte Clapp Coach: Alex Austerberry FB 15 Ella Lovibond RW 14 Reneeqa Bonner OC 13 Phoebe Murray IC 12 Holly Aitchison LW 11 Deborah Wills FH 10 Amber Reed (cc) SH 9 Keira Bevan N8 8 Rownita Marston-Mulhearn OF 7 Evie Gallagher BF 6 Alisha Joyce-Butchers RL 5 Abbie Ward (cc) LL 4 Delaney Burns TP 3 Hannah Botterman HK 2 Lark Atkin-Davies LP 1 Simi Pam Substitutions:HK 16 Jess Sprague PR 17 Holly Phllips PR 18 Ellie Marston-Mulhearn LK 19 Hollie Cunningham FL 20 Gabriella Nigrelli SH 21 Lucy Burgess CE 22 Meryl Smith WG 23 Courtney Keight Coach: Dave Ward

Team details FB 15 Emma Sing RW 14 Mia Venner OC 13 Hannah Jones IC 12 Tatyana Heard LW 11 Pip Hendy FH 10 Lleucu George SH 9 Natasha Hunt (cc) N8 8 Zoe Aldcroft (cc) OF 7 Bethan Lewis BF 6 Georgia Brock RL 5 Sam Monaghan LL 4 Sarah Beckett TP 3 Maud Muir HK 2 Neve Jones LP 1 Mackenzie Carson Substitutions:HK 16 Amy Dale PR 17 Ellena Perry PR 18 Sisilia Tuipulotu FL 19 Kate Williams FL 20 Carmen Castellucci SH 21 Bianca Blackburn FH 22 Millie Hyett CE 23 Rachel Lund Coach: Sean Lynn FB 15 Alex Tessier RW 14 Katie Buchanan OC 13 Merryn Doidge IC 12 Gabby Cantorna LW 11 Connie Clarke FH 10 Robyn Wilkins SH 9 Brooke Bradley N8 8 Rachel Johnson OF 7 Maisy Allen BF 6 Ebony Jefferies RL 5 Poppy Leitch (c) LL 4 Linde van der Velden TP 3 DaLeaka Menin HK 2 Emily Tuttosi LP 1 Hope Rogers Substitutions:HK 16 Cliodhna Moloney PR 17 Demi Swann PR 18 Lizzie Hanlon LK 19 Niamh Orchard FL 20 Harriet Millar-Mills FL 21 Maddie Feaunati SH 22 Taz Bricknell WG 23 Naomi Brennan Coach: Susie Appleby

Final

Leading scorers Note: Flags to the left of player names indicate national team as has been defined under World Rugby eligibility rules, or primary nationality for players who have not yet earned international senior caps. Players may hold one or more non-WR nationalities.

Most points

Source: Rank Player Club Points 1 Emma Sing Gloucester-Hartpury 125 2 Gabby Cantorna Exeter 95 3 Zoe Harrison Saracens 86 4 Amber Reed Bristol 79 5 Sophie de Goede Saracens 74 6 Ellie Green Trailfinders 71 7 Lagi Tuima Harlequins 61 8 Ella Cromack Harlequins 60 Abigail Dow Trailfinders 10 Megan Jones Leicester 67

Most tries

Source: Rank Player Club Tries1 Abby Dow Trailfinders 12 2 Kathryn Treder Loughborough 11 3 Sydney Gregson Saracens 10 Marlie Packer Saracens Neve Jones Gloucester-Hartpury 6 Sarah Beckett Gloucester-Hartpury 9 Claudia MacDonald Exeter Lana Skeldon Bristol Bo Westcombe-Evans Loughborough 10 4 players tied 8

Discipline Citings/bans Note: The cited player's club is listed in bold italics. Player Match Match date Law breached Result Shannon Ikahihifo Trailfinders vs. Harlequins 18 November 2023 9.13–Dangerous Tackling(Red card) 3-match ban Zoe Harrison Trailfinders vs. Saracens 25 November 2023 9.27–Acts Contrary to Good Sportmanship(Citing) 1-match ban Demi Swann Exeter vs. Bristol 26 November 2023 9.27–Acts Contrary to Good Sportmanship(Citing) 1-match ban Emily Robinson Harlequins vs. Saracens 2 December 2023 9.12–Striking with the Head(Red card) 5-match ban Lizzie Goulden Gloucester-Hartpury vs. Loughborough 6 January 2024 9.13–Dangerous Tackling(Citing) 3-match ban Kelsey Jones Gloucester-Hartpury vs. Saracens 20 January 2024 9.13–Dangerous Tackling(Red card) 3-match ban Mhairi Grieve Exeter vs. Sale 11 February 2024 9.13–Dangerous Tackling(Citing) 3-match ban Linde van der Velden Gloucester-Hartpury vs. Exeter 2 March 2024 9.13–Dangerous Tackling(Citing) 3-match ban Poppy Cleall Saracens vs. Leicester 3 March 2024 9.27–Acts Contrary to Good Sportmanship(Citing) 2-match ban

Allianz Cup

| top point scorer = | top try scorer = | website = www.thepwr.com | teams = 10 (before 17 October 2023) 9 (after 17 October 2023)

In the Allianz Cup, teams were drawn into pools of five. Each team plays every team in their pool once, home or away, as well as having one bye week.

Teams that secure the top two positions within their respective pools will advance to a playoff for the 1st to 4th rankings. The winning team from the initial bracket will move on to the final, while the losing team will compete in the 3rd place playoff. Teams finishing in third or fourth within their pools will participate in a playoff for the 4th to 8th rankings. The winner of the initial bracket will progress to the 4th place play-off, while the losing team will be part of the 6th place play-off. Teams that are last at the end of the pool stage will participate in a two-legged play-off for the 9th to 10th position, with the overall winner determined by the aggregate score.

The fixtures were announced on 9 August 2023.

Pool A

Points allocationTeams are awarded: Four points are awarded for a win. Two points are awarded for a draw. A try bonus point is awarded to teams that score four or more tries in a match. A losing bonus point is awarded to teams that lose a match by seven or fewer points.

Tie-breaking criteriaIf teams are level at any stage, tiebreakers are applied in the following order: Number of matches won Difference between points for and against Total number of points for Total number of tries scored

Round 1

Round 2

Round 3

Round 4

Round 5

Pool B

Points allocationTeams are awarded: Four points are awarded for a win. Two points are awarded for a draw. A try bonus point is awarded to teams that score four or more tries in a match.