2006–07 Premiership Rugby

The 2006–07 Guinness Premiership was the 20th season of the top flight of the English domestic rugby union competitions, played between September 2006 and May 2007. It was announced during the 2005-06 season that the 2006-07 competition would end two weeks early due to the 2007 Rugby World Cup in France, as England would be defending their title.^[1] At the end of the previous season, Harlequins gained promotion to this season, while the Leeds Tykes were relegated. The Champions of this season were Leicester Tigers, beating Gloucester RFC 44–16 on 12 May in the Final at Twickenham, while the Northampton Saints were relegated. Leeds returned in 2007–08, under their new name of Leeds Carnegie, after being promoted.

2006–07 Guinness Premiership
Countries	England
Champions	Leicester Tigers (7th title)
Runners-up	Gloucester
Relegated	Northampton Saints
Matches played	135
Attendance	1,598,734 (average 11,842 per match)
← 2005–06 2007–08 →

From the start of the season, all half-time intervals were increased from the traditional 10 minutes to 15 minutes. The move has been explained as allowing clubs to capitalise on growing capacities and maximise refreshment income.^[2]

Two of the opening games of the season were played at Twickenham, in the 2006 London Double Header.^[1]

Participating teams

Bath

Bristol

Gloucester

Harlequins

Leicester

L Irish

Newcastle

Northampton

Sale

Saracens

L Wasps

Worcester

Locations of the 2006-07 Guinness Premiership teams

Team	Stadium	Capacity	City/Area
Bath	Recreation Ground	10,600	Bath, Somerset
Bristol	Memorial Stadium[n 1]	12,100	Bristol
Gloucester	Kingsholm[n 2]	12,500	Gloucester, Gloucestershire
Harlequins	The Stoop	12,638	Twickenham, London
Leicester Tigers	Welford Road	16,815	Leicester, Leicestershire
London Irish	Madejski Stadium[n 3]	24,161	Reading, Berkshire
London Wasps	Adams Park	10,000	High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire
Newcastle Falcons	Kingston Park	10,200	Newcastle upon Tyne, Tyne and Wear
Northampton Saints	Franklin's Gardens	13,600	Northampton, Northamptonshire
Sale	Edgeley Park	10,852	Stockport, Greater Manchester
Saracens	Vicarage Road[n 4]	22,000	Watford, Hertfordshire
Worcester	Sixways	10,197	Worcester, Worcestershire

Notes

1. • Bristol would also play 2 home games at Ashton Gate in Bristol on 27 December 2006 and 24 April 2007
2. • Gloucester would also play 1 home game at Ashton Gate in Bristol on 28 April 2007
3. • London Irish would also play 1 home game at Twickenham Stadium in London on 2 September 2006
4. • Saracens would also play 1 home game at Twickenham Stadium in London on 2 September 2006

Table

Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	PF	PA	PD	T	TB	LB	Pts
1	Gloucester (F)	22	15	2	5	531	404	+127	41	3	4	71
2	Leicester Tigers (C)	22	14	1	7	569	456	+113	37	9	5	71[a]
3	Bristol (SF)	22	14	1	7	398	394	+4	37	3	3	64
4	Saracens (SF)	22	12	2	8	539	399	+140	40	7	4	63
5	London Wasps	22	12	1	9	504	431	+73	41	5	6	61
6	London Irish	22	12	0	10	398	407	−9	42	3	2	53
7	Harlequins	22	10	0	12	503	438	+65	46	5	6	51
8	Bath	22	8	2	12	428	492	−64	50	2	7	45
9	Newcastle Falcons	22	9	0	13	435	528	−93	55	2	6	44
10	Sale Sharks	22	8	1	13	414	500	−86	44	2	6	42
11	Worcester Warriors	22	6	1	15	346	459	−113	50	0	9	35
12	Northampton Saints (R)	22	6	1	15	342	499	−157	52	1	6	33

Source: www.guinnesspremiership.com and BBC Sport: Updated 2007-04-28 --- Current English Leagues
Rules for classification: If teams are level at any stage, they are ranked by: 1. number of wins 2. league points 3. match points difference 4. match points for 5. head-to-head record.
Notes:

1. Leicester were docked one point for fielding an ineligible player

Results

Round 1

2 September 2006 14:00

London Irish	20 – 19	NEC Harlequins

Twickenham Attendance: 51,960

2 September 2006 15:00

Gloucester	24 – 19	Bath

Kingsholm Attendance: 12,500

2 September 2006 15:00

Worcester Warriors	11 – 41	Bristol

Sixways Attendance: 9,620

2 September 2006 16:20

Saracens	19 – 21	London Wasps

Twickenham Attendance: 51,960

3 September 2006 13:45

Northampton Saints	25 – 23	Newcastle Falcons

Franklin’s Gardens Attendance: 13,520

3 September 2006 16:00

Leicester Tigers	35 – 23	Sale Sharks

Welford Road Attendance: 16,815

Round 2

8 September 2006 19:45

London Wasps	23 – 17	London Irish

Adams Park Attendance: 7,203

8 September 2006 20:00

Newcastle Falcons	20 – 19	Worcester Warriors

Kingston Park Attendance: 6,654

9 September 2006 14:00

Sale Sharks	32 – 20	Northampton Saints

Edgeley Park Attendance: 9,418

9 September 2006 14:15

Bath	43 – 25	Leicester Tigers

Recreation Ground Attendance: 10,600

9 September 2006 15:00

NEC Harlequins	21 – 31	Gloucester

Twickenham Stoop Attendance: 9,497

10 September 2006 15:00

Bristol	13 – 13	Saracens

Memorial Stadium Attendance: 9,100

Round 3

15 September 2006 20:00

Worcester Warriors	13 – 25	Sale Sharks

Sixways Attendance: 9,432

16 September 2006 13:30

Northampton Saints	33 – 18	Bath

Franklin’s Gardens Attendance: 13,186

16 September 2006 14:45

London Irish	11 – 23	Bristol

Madejski Stadium Attendance: 7,650

16 September 2006 15:00

Leicester Tigers	27 – 27	Gloucester

Welford Road Attendance: 16,815

17 September 2006 15:00

London Wasps	42 – 23	NEC Harlequins

Adams Park Attendance: 7,340

17 September 2006 15:00

Saracens	44 – 20	Newcastle Falcons

Vicarage Road Attendance: 7,213

Round 4

22 September 2006 19:45

Sale Sharks	34 – 26	Saracens

Edgeley Park Attendance: 9,537

22 September 2006 20:00

Newcastle Falcons	21 – 26	London Irish

Kingston Park Attendance: 6,060

23 September 2006 14:15

Bath	17 – 11	Worcester Warriors

Recreation Ground Attendance: 10,140

23 September 2006 15:00

Gloucester	28 – 7	Northampton Saints

Kingsholm Attendance: 11,159

23 September 2006 18:15

NEC Harlequins	15 – 21	Leicester Tigers

Twickenham Stoop Attendance: 10,164

24 September 2006 15:00

Bristol	26 – 21	London Wasps

Memorial Stadium Attendance: 11,200

Round 5

13 October 2006 20:00

Worcester Warriors	24 – 33	Gloucester

Sixways Attendance: 10,197

14 October 2006 15:00

Northampton Saints	10 – 15	Leicester Tigers

Franklin’s Gardens Attendance: 13,564

15 October 2006 14:00

London Wasps	35 – 15	Newcastle Falcons

Adams Park Attendance: 7,440

15 October 2006 15:00

Bristol	33 – 20	NEC Harlequins

Memorial Stadium Attendance: 10,136

15 October 2006 15:00

London Irish	14 – 31	Sale Sharks

Madejski Stadium Attendance: 9,102

15 October 2006 15:00

Saracens	55 – 23	Bath

Vicarage Road Attendance: 7,214

Round 6

3 November 2006 19:45

Sale Sharks	18 – 12	London Wasps

Edgeley Park Attendance: 10,417

3 November 2006 20:00

Newcastle Falcons	26 – 21	Bristol

Kingston Park Attendance: 6,140

4 November 2006 14:15

Bath	17 – 21	London Irish

Recreation Ground Attendance: 10,600

4 November 2006 15:00

Leicester Tigers	40 – 21	Worcester Warriors

Welford Road Attendance: 16,766

4 November 2006 15:00

NEC Harlequins	34 – 19	Northampton Saints

Twickenham Stoop Attendance: 11,354

4 November 2006 17:45

Gloucester	21 – 12	Saracens

Kingsholm Attendance: 10,052

Round 7

10 November 2006 19:45

Bristol	15 – 9	Sale Sharks

Memorial Stadium Attendance: 10,753

10 November 2006 19:45

Newcastle Falcons	3 – 14	NEC Harlequins

Kingston Park Attendance: 10,004

10 November 2006 20:00

London Irish	11 – 22	Gloucester

Madejski Stadium Attendance: 9,880

11 November 2006 15:00

Worcester Warriors	18 – 23	Northampton Saints

Sixways Attendance: 9,240

12 November 2006 15:00

London Wasps	47 – 18	Bath

Adams Park Attendance: 7,309

12 November 2006 15:00

Saracens	22 – 16	Leicester Tigers

Vicarage Road Attendance: 8,895

Round 8

17 November 2006 19:45

NEC Harlequins	20 – 6	Worcester Warriors

Twickenham Stoop Attendance: 9,833

17 November 2006 19:45

Sale Sharks	18 – 26	Newcastle Falcons

Edgeley Park Attendance: 9,340

18 November 2006 13:00

Northampton Saints	13 – 35	Saracens

Franklin’s Gardens Attendance: 13,356

18 November 2006 14:45

Leicester Tigers	26 – 18	London Irish

Welford Road Attendance: 16,815

18 November 2006 15:00

Gloucester	27 – 21	London Wasps

Kingsholm Attendance: 12,500

18 November 2006 17:30

Bath	12 – 19	Bristol

Recreation Ground Attendance: 10,600

Round 9

24 November 2006 19:45

Bristol	14 – 12	Gloucester

Memorial Stadium Attendance: 11,916

24 November 2006 19:45

Sale Sharks	17 – 12	NEC Harlequins

Edgeley Park Attendance: 8,616

25 November 2006 12:30

Bath	20 – 14	Newcastle Falcons

Recreation Ground Attendance: 10,600

26 November 2006 14:00

Saracens	17 – 20	Worcester Warriors

Vicarage Road Attendance: 5,027

26 November 2006 15:00

London Irish	40 – 5	Northampton Saints

Madejski Stadium Attendance: 7,400

26 November 2006 15:00

London Wasps	13 – 19	Leicester Tigers

Adams Park Attendance: 9,500

Round 10

22 December 2006 19:45

Bath	18 – 16	Sale Sharks

Recreation Ground Attendance: 10,300

22 December 2006 19:45

Leicester Tigers	43 – 15	Bristol

Welford Road Attendance: 16,815

22 December 2006 19:45

NEC Harlequins	16 – 20	Saracens

Twickenham Stoop Attendance: 10,103

22 December 2006 20:00

Northampton Saints	8 – 6	London Wasps

Franklin’s Gardens Attendance: 13,484

22 December 2006 20:00

Worcester Warriors	14 – 16	London Irish

Sixways Attendance: 9,382

Round 11

26 December 2006 15:00

London Irish	26 – 25	Leicester Tigers

Madejski Stadium Attendance: 13,380

26 December 2006 15:00

London Wasps	33 – 12	Gloucester

Adams Park Attendance: 10,000

26 December 2006 15:00

Newcastle Falcons	40 – 25	Sale Sharks

Kingston Park Attendance: 8,574

27 December 2006 17:15

Bristol	16 – 6	Bath

Ashton Gate Attendance: 21,203

27 December 2006 19:45

Saracens	38 – 15	Northampton Saints

Vicarage Road Attendance: 12,082

27 December 2006 20:00

Worcester Warriors	20 – 27	NEC Harlequins

Sixways Attendance: 10,797

Round 12

1 January 2007 14:45

Leicester Tigers	28 – 15	Saracens

Welford Road Attendance: 16,815

1 January 2007 15:00

Bath	30 – 19	London Wasps

Recreation Ground Attendance: 10,600

1 January 2007 15:00

Gloucester	15 – 3	London Irish

Kingsholm Attendance: 12,500

1 January 2007 15:00

NEC Harlequins	42 – 15	Newcastle Falcons

Twickenham Stoop Attendance: 10,837

1 January 2007 15:00

Northampton Saints	9 – 10	Worcester Warriors

Franklin’s Gardens Attendance: 13,423

1 January 2007 15:00

Sale Sharks	6 – 10	Bristol

Edgeley Park Attendance: 9,422

Round 13

6 January 2007 15:00

NEC Harlequins	9 – 3	Bath

Twickenham Stoop Attendance: 10,920

6 January 2007 17:45

Sale Sharks	20 – 19	Gloucester

Edgeley Park Attendance: 8,377

7 January 2007 15:00

London Wasps	19 – 14	Worcester Warriors

Adams Park Attendance: 7,224

7 January 2007 15:00

Newcastle Falcons	31 – 29	Leicester Tigers

Kingston Park Attendance: 7,565

Round 14

26 January 2007 20:00

Worcester Warriors	3 – 3	London Wasps

Sixways Attendance: 9,110

27 January 2007 14:15

Bath	31 – 23	NEC Harlequins

Recreation Ground Attendance: 10,600

27 January 2007 15:00

Gloucester	44 – 24	Sale Sharks

Kingsholm Attendance: 12,058

27 January 2007 15:00

Leicester Tigers	39 – 5	Newcastle Falcons

Welford Road Attendance: 16,815

27 January 2007 17:45

Northampton Saints	8 – 14	Bristol

Franklin’s Gardens Attendance: 12,876

28 January 2007 13:30

Saracens	19 – 8	London Irish

Vicarage Road Attendance: 8,492

Round 15

17 February 2007 14:45

Worcester Warriors	6 – 13	Leicester Tigers

Sixways Attendance: 9,623

17 February 2007 15:00

London Irish	15 – 7	Bath

Madejski Stadium Attendance: 11,480

17 February 2007 15:00

Northampton Saints	15 – 28	NEC Harlequins

Franklin’s Gardens Attendance: 13,466

18 February 2007 13:30

London Wasps	26 – 18	Sale Sharks

Adams Park Attendance: 8,599

18 February 2007 15:00

Bristol	22 – 21	Newcastle Falcons

Memorial Stadium Attendance: 11,601

18 February 2007 15:00

Saracens	24 – 22	Gloucester

Vicarage Road Attendance: 8,452

Round 16

23 February 2007 19:45

Sale Sharks	9 – 14	London Irish

Edgeley Park Attendance: 9,275

23 February 2007 20:00

Newcastle Falcons	37 – 11	London Wasps

Kingston Park Attendance: 9,665

24 February 2007 13:00

Leicester Tigers	9 – 10	Northampton Saints

Welford Road Attendance: 16,815

24 February 2007 14:15

Bath	20 – 20	Saracens

Recreation Ground Attendance: 10,600

24 February 2007 15:00

Gloucester	33 – 19	Worcester Warriors

Kingsholm Attendance: 12,500

24 February 2007 15:00

NEC Harlequins	15 – 8	Bristol

Twickenham Stoop Attendance: 11,316

Round 17

3 March 2007 15:00

London Irish	38 – 12	Newcastle Falcons

Madejski Stadium Attendance: 10,003

3 March 2007 15:00

Northampton Saints	5 – 7	Gloucester

Franklin’s Gardens Attendance: 13,529

3 March 2007 15:00

Worcester Warriors	21 – 15	Bath

Sixways Attendance: 9,344

3 March 2007 17:15

Leicester Tigers	27 – 22	NEC Harlequins

Welford Road Attendance: 16,815

4 March 2007 15:00

London Wasps	28 – 0	Bristol

Adams Park Attendance: 8,393

4 March 2007 15:00

Saracens	22 – 9	Sale Sharks

Vicarage Road Attendance: 8,333

Round 18

9 March 2007 19:45

Sale Sharks	12 – 18	Worcester Warriors

Edgeley Park Attendance: 8,376

9 March 2007 20:00

Newcastle Falcons	20 – 14	Saracens

Kingston Park Attendance: 6,368

10 March 2007 14:15

Bath	22 – 17	Northampton Saints

Recreation Ground Attendance: 10,600

10 March 2007 15:00

Bristol	7 – 12	London Irish

Memorial Stadium Attendance: 8,593

10 March 2007 15:00

NEC Harlequins	16 – 23	London Wasps

Twickenham Stoop Attendance: 12,700

11 March 2007 13:00

Gloucester	28 – 24	Leicester Tigers

Kingsholm Attendance: 12,000

Round 19

16 March 2007 20:00

Worcester Warriors	23 – 21	Newcastle Falcons

Sixways Attendance: 9,827

17 March 2007 14:45

Leicester Tigers	29 – 25	Bath

Welford Road Attendance: 16,815

17 March 2007 15:00

Gloucester	34 – 25	NEC Harlequins

Kingsholm Attendance: 10,391

17 March 2007 15:00

Northampton Saints	18 – 18	Sale Sharks

Franklin’s Gardens Attendance: 13,265

18 March 2007 14:00

London Irish	16 – 13	London Wasps

Madejski Stadium Attendance: 22,648

18 March 2007 15:00

Saracens	36 – 5	Bristol

Vicarage Road Attendance: 7,737

Rearranged fixtures

23 March 2007 20:00

London Irish	7 – 22	Saracens

Madejski Stadium Attendance: 8,738

24 March 2007 16:30

Gloucester	24 – 18	Newcastle Falcons

Kingsholm Attendance: 12,500

25 March 2007 15:00

Bristol	31 – 19	Northampton Saints

Memorial Stadium Attendance: 9,553

Round 20

6 April 2007 19:45

Sale Sharks	25 – 26	Leicester Tigers

Edgeley Park Attendance: 10,037

7 April 2007 14:15

Bath	21 – 21	Gloucester

Recreation Ground Attendance: 10,600

7 April 2007 14:45

Bristol	22 – 17	Worcester Warriors

Memorial Stadium Attendance: 8,516

7 April 2007 15:00

NEC Harlequins	34 – 17	London Irish

Twickenham Stoop Attendance: 12,600

8 April 2007 15:00

London Wasps	27 – 26	Saracens

Adams Park Attendance: 10,000

8 April 2007 15:00

Newcastle Falcons	16 – 7	Northampton Saints

Kingston Park Attendance: 10,200

Round 21

13 April 2007 19:45

Sale Sharks	25 – 23	Bath

Edgeley Park Attendance: 10,641

13 April 2007 20:00

Newcastle Falcons	19 – 12	Gloucester

Kingston Park Attendance: 7,016

15 April 2007 12:15

London Wasps	35 – 29	Northampton Saints

Adams Park Attendance: 8,053

15 April 2007 15:00

London Irish	26 – 16	Worcester Warriors

Madejski Stadium Attendance: 10,862

15 April 2007 15:00

Saracens	33 – 19	NEC Harlequins

Vicarage Road Attendance: 12,553

24 April 2007 19:45

Bristol	30 – 13	Leicester Tigers

Ashton Gate Attendance: 12,495

Round 22

28 April 2007 15:05

Gloucester	35 – 13	Bristol

Ashton Gate Attendance: 15,852

28 April 2007 15:05

Leicester Tigers	40 – 26	London Wasps

Welford Road Attendance: 17,418

28 April 2007 15:05

NEC Harlequins	49 – 0	Sale Sharks

Twickenham Stoop Attendance: 12,680

28 April 2007 15:05

Newcastle Falcons	12 – 20	Bath

Kingston Park Attendance: 9,118

28 April 2007 15:05

Northampton Saints	27 – 22	London Irish

Franklin’s Gardens Attendance: 13,538

28 April 2007 15:05

Worcester Warriors	22 – 7	Saracens

Sixways Attendance: 10,197

Play-offs

Semi-finals

5 May 2007 13:00

Gloucester	50 – 9	Saracens

Kingsholm Attendance: 9,300

5 May 2007 17:30

Leicester Tigers	26 – 14	Bristol

Welford Road Attendance: 10,675

Final

12 May 2007 14:30

Gloucester	16–44	Leicester Tigers
Tries: Lamb c Conv: Walker 1/1 Pens:Walker 3	Report 1 Report 2	Tries: F.Murphy, 2 Tuilagi, Corry, Goode, Jennings, Moody Conv: Goode 3/7 Pens: Goode

Twickenham Attendance: 59,400 Referee: Dave Pearson

Team details

Gloucester Leicester Tigers FB 15 Willie Walker RW 14 Iain Balshaw OC 13 James Simpson-Daniel IC 12 Anthony Allen LW 11 Mark Foster FH 10 Ryan Lamb SH 9 Peter Richards  53' N8 8 Luke Narraway OF 7 Andy Hazell BF 6 Peter Buxton (c)  15' RL 5 Alex Brown LL 4 Will James  78' TP 3 Carlos Nieto HK 2 Olivier Azam  48' LP 1 Nick Wood  54' Replacements: HK 16 Mefin Davies  48' PR 17 Christian Califano  54' LK 18 Adam Eustace  78' FL 19 Jake Boer  15' SH 20 Rory Lawson  53' CE 21 Jake Adams FB 22 Jon Goodridge Coach: Dean Ryan FB 15 Geordan Murphy RW 14 Seru Rabeni  62' OC 13 Dan Hipkiss IC 12 Ollie Smith  57' LW 11 Alesana Tuilagi FH 10 Andy Goode SH 9 Frank Murphy  67' N8 8 Martin Corry (c) OF 7 Shane Jennings  70' BF 6 Lewis Moody RL 5 Ben Kay LL 4 Louis Deacon  56' TP 3 Julian White  67' HK 2 George Chuter  70' LP 1 Marcos Ayerza Replacements: HK 16 James Buckland  70' PR 17 Alex Moreno  67' LK 18 Leo Cullen  56' FL 19 Brett Deacon  70' SH 20 Ben Youngs  67' FH 21 Sam Vesty  57' CE 22 Tom Varndell  62' Coach: Pat Howard

Individual statistics

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 did not earn international senior caps. Players may hold one or more non-WR nationalities.

Most points Source:[3] Rank Player Club Points 1 Glen Jackson Saracens 281 2 Olly Barkley Bath 185 Willie Walker Gloucester 4 Adrian Jarvis Harlequins 181 5 Andy Goode Leicester Tigers 174 6 Shane Drahm Worcester Warriors 156 7 Toby Flood Newcastle Falcons 89 8 Ryan Lamb Gloucester 87 9 Ian Humphreys Leicester Tigers 84 Mark van Gisbergen London Wasps

Most tries Source:[4] Rank Player Club Tries 1 David Lemi Bristol 11 2 Mike Brown Harlequins 9 Tom Varndell Leicester Tigers 4 Topsy Ojo London Irish 8 Mark Robinson Northampton Saints Paul Sackey London Wasps David Strettle Harlequins Alesana Tuilagi Leicester Tigers 9 Kameli Ratuvou Saracens 7 10 6 players tied 6

References

1. McConnell, Jonathan (2006-05-26). ""Derby Day" to Kick Off the 2006-07 Guinness Premiership Season". GuinnessPremiership.com. Archived from the original on March 6, 2008. Retrieved 2007-05-31.
2. BBC Sport — Rugby Union (2006-04-18). "Premiership to extend half-time". BBC.co.uk. Retrieved 2007-05-31.
3. "2006-07 Premiership Rugby top points scorers". ESPNScrum. Retrieved 1 September 2020.
4. "2006-07 Premiership Rugby top try scorers". ESPNscrum. Retrieved 1 September 2020.

External links

• Official site