Rugby Union | 2025/2026 season

This is the place for some of the latest Rugby Union news

The stories are from across the Super News network

Newcastle Red Bulls 8 – 10 Leicester Tigers

A breakaway try from George Pearson and two assured kicks from Orlando Bailey helped Leicester Tigers edge out Newcastle Red Bulls in a tense encounter.

In a match that rarely settled into rhythm, a youthful Tigers side showed composure and resilience to secure their third consecutive win in the Premiership Rugby Cup. 

Huw Bevan moves to Leicester Tigers to be their new head of rugby operations.

Leicester Tigers have named Huw Bevan, the interim performance director at the Welsh Rugby Union, as their new head of rugby operations.

Bevan has been in the interim role with the Welsh governing body since April 2023 and will join the Premiership club in December.

The position is newly created as part of an off-field restructure at the East Midlands side. It follows the departure of general manager Richard Wilks in the summer and the recent appointment of retired club legend Dan Cole as recruitment and retention manager.

Bevan, who spent five years with USA Rugby before his tenure at the WRU, described the Tigers role as a "brilliant opportunity".

Bristol Bears 18 - 14 Exeter Chiefs 

Bristol Bears came from behind to claim an 18-14 victory over Exeter Chiefs in a tense West Country derby at Ashton Gate. The Bears opened the scoring with a Tom Jordan penalty and a try from Viliame Mata, taking an early 8-0 lead. Exeter responded before the break, with Henry Slade crossing and Ben Hammersley scoring after Jordan was sent off, giving the Chiefs a 14-8 advantage at half-time.

The second half saw Bristol regain control, with Gabriel Oghre scoring soon after the team returned to full strength. Exeter threatened late on, but a Harvey Skinner try was overturned and a last-minute penalty from Sam Worsley secured the Bears’ second Premiership win of the season. The result marks Exeter’s first defeat of the campaign and lifts Bristol to fourth in the table, with the Chiefs dropping to fifth.

Bath appoint Gleeson as new coach

Bath have appointed former Warrington Wolves assistant coach Martin Gleeson as their new backs and attack coach.

The former England and Great Britain centre switches rugby codes again, having left the Super League side last week after just over two years in the role.

Saracens 50 - 17 Bristol Bears

The hosts stormed into a 24-0 lead inside 21 minutes through converted tries from Theo Dan, Nick Isiekwe and Max Malins, alongside an Owen Farrell penalty. Nick Tompkins added a bonus-point try before half-time to make it 31-0 at the break, although Kieran Marmion hit back with a fine solo score soon after the restart.

Jack Bracken marked his Premiership debut with two second-half tries, while Marmion crossed twice more to complete a hat-trick in 31 minutes. Hugh Tizard’s late effort sealed a half-century for Saracens, who underlined their title credentials with a clinical display.

Steve Diamond leaves role at Newcastle Red Bulls

It’s all change for Newcastle Red Bulls at the moment.They have parted company with their director of rugby, Steve Diamond, after just one game of the new Premiership season. The rebranded club were beaten 39-17 at home by Saracens in their opening fixture, and Diamond’s exit follows swiftly on from that defeat.

England 33 - 13 Canada

England's women were crowned world champions after a commanding win over Canada. In front of a record crowd of 81,885, the Red Roses banished the memories of back-to-back final defeats to New Zealand with a display built on forward dominance and relentless defence. The loss to the Black Ferns in 2021 remains their last, as John Mitchell’s side extended their extraordinary winning run to 33 matches.