New Premiership fixtures announced

By Mark Stevens

Exeter Chiefs will kick-off the new 2015/16 season with a trip to last season’s beaten Aviva Premiership finalists Bath.

Rob Baxter’s side will head to the Recreation Ground on Saturday, October 17 for a 2pm kick-off, which will also be screened live by BT Sport.

Entering into their sixth season in the top flight, the Chiefs will be looking to build on last season’s best-ever finish when they narrowly missed out on a place in the end of season play-offs on points’ difference to rivals Leicester Tigers and eventual champions Saracens.

The Chiefs will entertain London Irish in their first home game of the season a week later on Saturday, October 24 with a 6pm kick-off in a bid to avoid clashing with the first of the Rugby World Cup semi-finals.

November starts with an away date at Newcastle Falcons on Sunday, November 1 (1pm) before Leicester Tigers are the visitors to Devon on Saturday, November 7 (3pm).

Exeter’s return to Champions Cup duty begins on the weekends of November 14 and November 21 before Harlequins visit in the Premiership on the 28^th.

A busy December starts with the Chiefs heading to Wasps on December 5 before European exploits again take over the weekends of the 12^th and 19^th. For the first time in years, Exeter will have a festive home fixture with Sale Sharks the visitors on Boxing Day.

The New Year sees Baxter’s men travel to Northampton Saints on January 2^nd before Gloucester head down the M5 a week later for the first home game of 2016.

The final two rounds of Europe continue for the next fortnight before January is wrapped up with a trip to newly-promoted Worcester Warriors on the 30^th.

Champions Saracens provide the opposition at Sandy Park for the first home game in February on the 6^th, before the Chiefs embark on successive away days at Sale Sharks (13^th) and London Irish (20^th).

The much-anticipated home encounter with arch rivals Bath takes place on February 27 before Devon’s finest head for Leicester Tigers a week later on March 5.

Back-to-back home games with Newcastle Falcons (12^th) and Northampton (19^th) fill the middle of the month, before Saracens provide the next opposition on the 26^th.

With the season heading towards its climax, Worcester Warriors visit Sandy Park on April 2 before Baxter’s squad make the trip to Kingsholm to face Gloucester on April 16 and Wasps arrive in the Westcountry on April 30.

Round 22 of the scheduled season will conclude with the Chiefs visiting Harlequins on Saturday, May 7.

The Premiership play-offs will take place over the weekend of May 21 with the final itself taking place at Twickenham on Saturday, May 28.

The 2014-15 campaign was a great season for Aviva Premiership Rugby:

•    Live TV audiences were up 6%
•    Attendances were up 5%
•    Last season there were an average of more than five tries a match in Aviva Premiership Rugby, higher than any other league in the world
•    Yet almost half our games finish with only one score difference between the teams
•    Aviva Premiership Rugby is now shown on TV in 147 countries across the world

 

EXETER'S AVIVA PREMIERSHIP FIXTURES 2015/16

OCTOBER

17 Bath (A)

24 London Irish (H)

NOVEMBER

1 Newcastle Falcons (A)

 7 Leicester Tigers (H)

14 European Rugby 1

21 European Rugby 2

28 Harlequins (H)

DECEMBER

5 Wasps (A)

12 European Rugby 3

19 European Rugby 4

26 Sale Sharks (H)

JANUARY

2 Northampton Saints (A)

9 Gloucester (H)

16 European Rugby 5

23 European Rugby 6

30 Worcester Warriors (A)

FEBUARY

6 Saracens (H)

13 Sale Sharks (A)

20 London Irish (A)

27 Bath (H)

MARCH

5 Leicester Tigers (A)

12 Newcastle Falcons (H)

19 Northampton Saints (H)

26 Saracens (A)

APRIL

2 Worcester Warriors (H)

9 European Rugby Quarter-Finals

16 Gloucester (A)

23 European Rugby Semi-Finals

30 Wasps (H)

MAY

7 Harlequins (A)

14 European Rugby Finals

21 Aviva Premiership Semi-Finals

28 Aviva Premiership Final

** Note fixture dates and kick-off times are subject to change **