> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://the-breakdown.ghost.io/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # PWR 2026-27 preview: the teams and players to watch - URL: https://the-breakdown.ghost.io/pwr-2026-27-preview-the-teams-and-players-to-watch/ - Published: 2026-10-12T19:59:31.000Z - Updated: 2026-10-12T20:06:54.000Z - Author: Allen Talbot - Tags: PWR *The new Premiership Women’s Rugby season kicks off on the weekend of 20 to 22 November, and the summer has reshaped the league. Some of the biggest names in the game have switched clubs, Saracens arrive as champions, and a handful of sides have rebuilt around new coaches and new faces. Here is who to watch.* SPONSORED [![CTA Image](https://storage.ghost.io/c/1e/27/1e27d0c3-d71d-4aaa-a1a1-618c0bf6d449/content/images/2026/10/Logo-1-Layers.png)](https://www.wildquest.digital/?ref=the-breakdown.ghost.io) This article is brought to you by Wild Quest Digital - the number one marketing agency for rugby brands around the world [Check them out! ](https://www.wildquest.digital/?ref=the-breakdown.ghost.io) ## **The season at a glance** • Nine clubs: Gloucester-Hartpury, Saracens, Exeter Chiefs, Trailfinders, Harlequins, Loughborough Lightning, Sale Sharks, Bristol Bears and Leicester Tigers. • The regular season runs from Round 1 on 20 to 22 November, with a break for the Women’s Six Nations before Round 17 on 29 to 30 May 2027. • Play-off semi-finals are on 12 to 13 June 2027, and the final is on 26 to 27 June 2027, with the venue still to be confirmed. • Defending champions Saracens beat Trailfinders in last season’s final at Twickenham Stoop. ## **Five players to watch** **Ellie Kildunne (Bristol Bears).** The England full-back left Harlequins after five seasons and 52 tries there, and joins Bristol for 2026-27\. Bears head coach Scott Lawson called the signing a huge statement of intent. She returns to the Stoop in Round 1. **Marlie Packer (Harlequins).** Moves from Saracens to Quins after scoring two tries in her final game for the champions, and features in the opening weekend at the Stoop against Kildunne’s Bristol. **Ruby Tui (Trailfinders).** The Black Ferns star and Olympic sevens gold medallist joins on what is understood to be a one-year deal. She called English women’s rugby the strongest competition in the world and said she was impressed by how Trailfinders played last season. **Zoe Harrison (Saracens).** Last season’s top points scorer with 156 points, whose kicking game, including a 50:22 in the final, helped pin Trailfinders back. **Tatyana Heard and Zoe Stratford (Sale Sharks).** Two of four Gloucester-Hartpury players who have crossed to Sale, along with Sarah Beckett and Kelsey Jones. The Sharks host their former club in Round 1. ## **Round 1 fixtures** | **Fixture** | **Detail** | | ------------------------------------- | --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | | Harlequins v Bristol Bears | The Stoop. Kildunne returns to her former club, and Packer features for Quins. | | Sale Sharks v Gloucester-Hartpury | Morson Arena. Four former Gloucester-Hartpury players now in Sale colours. | | Loughborough Lightning v Trailfinders | Franklin’s Gardens. Trailfinders have signed Helen Nelson and Bo Westcombe-Evans from Loughborough. | | Saracens v Leicester Tigers | Champions open at home. | | Exeter Chiefs | Bye in Round 1\. Open in Round 2 against Bristol at Shaftesbury Park. | ## **Team by team** *Ordered by last season’s league finish.* **Gloucester-Hartpury (1st last season).** They topped the table with 14 wins from 16 but were beaten 29-26 by Trailfinders in the semi-final, and then lost four players to Sale. Gabrielle Vernier arrives in midfield as Heard’s successor. Mia Venner finished last season level at the top of the try-scoring charts with 12. **Saracens (2nd, champions).** They beat Trailfinders 52-14 in the final, the biggest winning margin in a PWR final, and lose Packer. Harrison and Jess Breach, who scored twice in the final, are the stars to follow. They host Trailfinders on 2 January in a rematch of the final. **Exeter Chiefs (3rd).** Back in the play-offs at the first attempt, they scored 82 tries, third most in the league. Oli Bishop has been promoted to head coach, and 13 internationals have re-signed, including World Cup-winning Red Roses Maddie Feaunati and Claudia Moloney-MacDonald. **Trailfinders (4th).** Beat the champions in the semi-final to reach their first PWR final in just their third season, then lost heavily to Saracens. Tui, Nelson and Westcombe-Evans arrive, but captain Kate Zackary is leaving. **Harlequins (5th).** Finished four points outside the play-offs. They lose Kildunne to Bristol and England centre Lagi Tuima to Leicester, but add Packer, and Round 1 against Bristol at the Stoop is one of the games of the weekend. **Loughborough Lightning (6th).** Lose Nelson and Westcombe-Evans to Trailfinders and lock Rachel Ehrecke to Leicester, so they enter the season with a rebuild on their hands. **Sale Sharks (7th).** Finished eight points short of the play-offs. England internationals Holly Aitchison and Amy Cokayne joined last off-season, and now Heard, Stratford, Beckett and Jones have followed from Gloucester-Hartpury, under head coach Tom Hudson. **Bristol Bears (8th).** Finished eighth on 34 points, so Kildunne’s arrival is the headline of their summer. Head coach Scott Lawson has described the signing as a statement of intent. **Leicester Tigers (9th).** Lost all 16 matches last season and have never finished higher than eighth. Six international signings have arrived: Ehrecke, Tabua Tuinakauvadra, Caitlyn Halse, Coco Lindelauf, Abbie Fleming and Lagi Tuima. Head coach Ross Bundy has left for an assistant role at Exeter.