3 Must-Watch Matches In Gallagher PREM Rugby In Round 8
3 Must-Watch Matches In Gallagher PREM Rugby In Round 8
Gallagher PREM Rugby Round 8 features Bath vs. Northampton, Exeter vs. Leicester and a Boxing Day clash between Sale-Harlequins as the title race tightens.
The Gallagher PREM Rugby season rolls to the eighth round, as Bath Rugby continues to be the class of the league.
The defending champions improved to 6-0-1 on the season with seven bonus points, and the loaded squad now has a three-point lead over the next four clubs.
But that shows just how deep the PREM is this season.
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The second and third spots on the table are tied with 28 points and matching 5-1-1 records, with Exeter getting the slight edge over the Northampton Saints.
The Saints were arguably the best team in the Investec Champions Cup’s first two pool matches, while Exeter may be the favorite to win the EPCR Challenge Cup.
If the playoffs started this week, it would be the Leicester Tigers — who have a two-point lead over the Bristol Bears on the table — sneaking into the field.
But the playoffs decidedly don’t start this holiday week.
Here are three must-watch matches in Gallagher PREM Rugby Round 8 as clubs try to close out 2025 with a win:
Bath Rugby vs. Northampton Saints, 12:30 p.m., Saturday, Dec. 27
FloRugby’s Match of the Week pits the two best teams from the PREM all season — and the last two Gallagher PREM champions — head-to-head.
Christmas comes early for rugby fans here, as Northampton, which went 2-0-0 and picked up two bonus-point wins in Champions Cup play this month, tries to catch up with Bath, which went 1-0-1 with a win over Munster and a loss at Toulon in Champions Cup play.
Bath enters the match having smashed Newcastle 50-14, while the Saints did the same against an even better club, Sale, in a 47-21 win. These are the two best teams in England clashing for the first time this season.
Exeter Chiefs vs. Leicester Tigers, 10 a.m., Sunday, Dec. 28
These are the second- and third-best clubs all season in the PREM.
The Chiefs’ bounce-back season has been one of the stories of the year in Gallagher play.
Exeter went 4-0-14 last season and finished ninth on the table, failing to qualify for the Champions Cup. But that was last season, and the lads from Sandy Park are roaring this year.
But is the roar louder than a Tigers team that has won three matches in a row in the PREM?
The Tigers may be sitting at 0-0-2 in Champions Cup play, but they can narrow the two-point gap that separates them from the third and fourth spots in the standings with a win. Expect Sandy Park to be loud on Sunday.
Sale Sharks vs. Harlequins, 12:30 p.m., Friday, Dec. 26
Boxing Day’s lone Gallagher PREM matchup features two clubs fighting to stay alive in the playoff chase — though it’s getting pretty bleak for both talented sides.
All the momentum the Quins built in their two strong Champions Cup pool performances didn’t carry over into Round 7. They were manhandled by the Bristol Bears at Allianz Stadium (Twickenham), 40-14. It was a fairly stunning result given how the Quins played Leinster in Dublin and how they crushed Bayonne 68-14 the weekend before.
The Sharks, meanwhile, were bulldozed by the Saints after having beaten Clermont the week prior.
Standings-wise, both clubs will need massive finishes to 2025 and strong starts to 2026 to get back into the playoff chase — the Quins are 16 points behind the Tigers, and the Sharks are 13 back.
In fact, with matching 2-0-5 records in the PREM, both are one bad weekend away from seeing Gloucester creep into the top 8.
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A FloRugby annual subscription delivers live coverage of PREM Rugby, the Top 14, URC, the EPCR Challenge Cup and the Investec Champions Cup throughout the season.
Gallagher PREM Round 8 Schedule
Friday, Dec. 26
- 12:30 PM ET – Sale Sharks vs. Harlequin F.C.
Saturday, Dec. 27
- 10 AM ET – Bristol Bears vs. Newcastle Red Bulls
- 10:05 AM ET – Gloucester Rugby vs. Saracens F.C.
- 12:30 PM ET – Bath Rugby vs. Northampton Saints
Sunday, Dec. 28
- 10 AM ET – Exeter Chiefs vs. Leicester Tigers
European Union Rugby Lives On FloSports And FloRugby
Rugby fans can stream every match from the Top 14, Gallagher Premiership and United Rugby Championship on FloRugby, along with the Investec Champions Cup and EPCR Challenge Cup, making the platform the U.S. home for the world’s biggest club competitions and the game’s top players.
How To Watch Rugby Matches In The United States On FloRugby
Professional club rugby in Europe all streams on FloRugby and the FloSports app in the United States. FloRugby and FloSports also are the U.S. home to:
- United Rugby Championship
- PREM Rugby
- Top 14
- Investec Champions Cup
- EPCR Challenge Cup
- Currie Cup
- Super Rugby
- And more
FloRugby also is home to match archives and match replays.