2009–10 English Premiership (rugby union)

2009–10 Guinness Premiership
Countries	England
Champions	Leicester Tigers (9th title)
Runners-up	Saracens
Relegated	Worcester Warriors
Matches played	135
Attendance	1,900,177 (average 14,075 per match)
Top point scorer	Jimmy Gopperth (219 points)
Top try scorer	Chris Ashton (16 tries)
← 2008–09 2010–11 →

The 2009–10 Guinness Premiership was the 23rd season of the top flight of the English domestic rugby union competitions, played between September 2009 and May 2010. Defending champions Leicester Tigers topped the regular season league table and then won their third title in four years and their ninth overall after they defeated Saracens in the Premiership final at Twickenham on 29 May 2010.^[1]

This was the final season for the competition as the Guinness Premiership. Effective with the 2010–11 season, the competition will be known as the Aviva Premiership for at least four seasons.

The previous season

The season saw the introduction of the controversial ELVs, although only 13 of the rules were used, as opposed to the 30 that were trialled in the Super 14. Most were abandoned at the end of the season.

Leicester Tigers finished top of the league after the home-and-away season and went on to win the championship, first defeating Bath 24–10 in the semifinals and then edging London Irish 10–9 in the final at Twickenham.

Bristol were relegated, to be replaced by Leeds Carnegie promoted back to the premiership at the first opportunity.

Teams

Bath

Leeds

Gloucester

Harlequins

Leicester

L Irish

L Wasps

Newcastle

Northampton

Sale

Saracens

Worcester

2009-10 Guinness Premiership Teams

Club	Kit Supplier	Captain	Stadium	Capacity	City/Area
Bath	Puma	Michael Claassens	Recreation Ground	11,700	Bath, Somerset
Gloucester	RugbyTech	Gareth Delve Mike Tindall	Kingsholm Stadium	16,500	Gloucester, Gloucestershire
Harlequins	KooGa	Will Skinner	Twickenham Stoop[n 1]	14,282	Twickenham, London
Leeds Carnegie	ISC	Marco Wentzel	Headingley	22,250	Leeds, West Yorkshire
Leicester Tigers	Cotton	Geordan Murphy	Welford Road	24,000	Leicester, Leicestershire
London Irish	RugbyTech	Bob Casey	Madejski Stadium	24,161	Reading, Berkshire
London Wasps	CCC	Tom Rees	Adams Park[n 2]	10,516	High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire
Newcastle Falcons	Cotton	Carl Hayman	Kingston Park	10,200	Newcastle upon Tyne, Tyne and Wear
Northampton Saints	Rhino	Dylan Hartley	Franklin's Gardens	13,591	Northampton, Northamptonshire
Sale Sharks	Cotton	Dean Schofield	Edgeley Park	10,852	Stockport, Greater Manchester
Saracens	KooGa	Steve Borthwick	Vicarage Road[n 3]	19,920	Watford, Hertfordshire
Worcester Warriors	Kukri	Pat Sanderson	Sixways	12,068	Worcester, Worcestershire

Notes

1. • Harlequins would also play 1 home game at Twickenham, London on 27 December 2009
2. • London Wasps would also play 2 home games at Twickenham, London on 5 September 2009 and 24 April 2010
3. • Saracens would also play 1 home game at Twickenham, London on 5 September 2009 as well as 3 home games at Wembley Stadium in London on 12 September 2009, 13 February 2010 and 17 April 2010

Table

	Club	Played	Won	Drawn	Lost	Points For	Points Against	Points Difference	Tries For	Tries Against	Try Bonus	Losing Bonus	Points
1	Leicester Tigers (C)	22	15	1	6	541	325	216	46	18	7	4	73
2	Northampton Saints (SF)	22	16	0	6	472	322	150	44	26	2	5	71
3	Saracens (F)	22	15	1	6	480	367	113	39	22	2	5	69
4	Bath (SF)	22	12	2	8	450	366	84	49	33	5	4	61
5	London Wasps	22	13	0	9	394	399	−5	35	31	2	3	57
6	London Irish	22	10	3	9	469	384	85	42	33	3	3	52
7	Gloucester	22	10	1	11	470	457	13	46	42	2	4	48
8	Harlequins	22	9	2	11	420	484	−64	42	46	3	3	46
9	Newcastle Falcons	22	6	4	12	319	431	−112	20	41	1	4	37
10	Leeds Carnegie	22	7	1	14	283	493	−210	17	48	0	6	36
11	Sale Sharks	22	6	1	15	333	495	−162	24	51	0	6	32
12	Worcester Warriors (R)	22	3	4	15	312	420	−108	23	36	0	8	28

If teams are level at any stage, tiebreakers are applied in the following order:

1. Number of matches won
2. Difference between points for and against
3. Total number of points for
4. Aggregate number of points scored in matches between tied teams
5. Number of matches won excluding the first match, then the second and so on until the tie is settled

(C)-Champions (Q)-Qualified for home play-off. (q)-Qualified for away play-off. (F)-Losing Finalists (R)-Relegated to Championship

Results

Round 1

4 September 2009 19:45

Sale Sharks	15 – 12	Leicester Tigers

Edgeley Park Attendance: 8,751

5 September 2009 14:30

Saracens	18 – 14	London Irish

Twickenham Attendance: 67,684

5 September 2009 17:15

London Wasps	26 – 15	Harlequins

Twickenham Attendance: 67,684

6 September 2009 13:15

Northampton Saints	20 – 17	Worcester Warriors

Franklin’s Gardens Attendance: 12,073

6 September 2009 15:00

Leeds Carnegie	9 – 9	Newcastle Falcons

Headingley Attendance: 7,144

6 September 2009 15:30

Gloucester	24 – 5	Bath

Kingsholm Attendance: 12,815

Round 2

11 September 2009 20:00

Worcester Warriors	27 – 7	Leeds Carnegie

Sixways Attendance: 10,094

12 September 2009 14:15

Bath	15 – 17	London Wasps

Recreation Ground Attendance: 11,300

12 September 2009 14:45

Saracens	19 – 16	Northampton Saints

Wembley Stadium Attendance: 44,832

12 September 2009 15:00

Harlequins	9 – 15	Leicester Tigers

Twickenham Stoop Attendance: 9,805

13 September 2009 15:00

London Irish	40 – 10	Gloucester

Madejski Stadium Attendance: 12,309

13 September 2009 15:00

Newcastle Falcons	16 – 16	Sale Sharks

Kingston Park Attendance: 5,155

Round 3

18 September 2009 19:45

Sale Sharks	12 – 25	Bath

Edgeley Park Attendance: 7,028

19 September 2009 15:00

Gloucester	14 – 27	Northampton Saints

Kingsholm Attendance: 11,365

19 September 2009 15:00

Harlequins	9 – 22	Saracens

Twickenham Stoop Attendance: 9,209

19 September 2009 17:35

Leicester Tigers	15 – 6	Newcastle Falcons

Welford Road Attendance: 24,000

20 September 2009 15:00

Leeds Carnegie	7 – 56	London Irish

Headingley Attendance: 6,047

20 September 2009 15:00

London Wasps	23 – 3	Worcester Warriors

Adams Park Attendance: 7,654

Round 4

25 September 2009 20:00

Newcastle Falcons	17 – 17	Harlequins

Kingston Park Attendance: 5,714

26 September 2009 15:00

Northampton Saints	30 – 10	Leeds Carnegie

Franklin’s Gardens Attendance: 12,441

26 September 2009 15:00

Worcester Warriors	24 – 18	Sale Sharks

Sixways Attendance: 9,510

26 September 2009 18:05

Bath	20 – 20	Leicester Tigers

Recreation Ground Attendance: 11,700

27 September 2009 15:00

London Irish	28 – 16	London Wasps

Madejski Stadium Attendance: 13,967

27 September 2009 15:00

Saracens	19 – 16	Gloucester

Vicarage Road Attendance: 7,776

Round 5

2 October 2009 19:45

Sale Sharks	8 – 11	London Irish

Edgeley Park Attendance: 6,924

3 October 2009 15:00

Leicester Tigers	19 – 14	Worcester Warriors

Welford Road Attendance: 17,974

3 October 2009 18:05

Harlequins	13 – 11	Bath

Twickenham Stoop Attendance: 11,203

4 October 2009 15:00

Leeds Carnegie	10 – 26	Gloucester

Headingley Attendance: 5,371

4 October 2009 15:00

London Wasps	20 – 15	Northampton Saints

Adams Park Attendance: 8,913

4 October 2009 15:00

Newcastle Falcons	15 – 22	Saracens

Kingston Park Attendance: 5,453

Round 6

24 October 2009 14:15

Bath	16 – 27	Newcastle Falcons

Recreation Ground Attendance: 11,700

24 October 2009 15:00

Northampton Saints	21 – 16	Sale Sharks

Franklin’s Gardens Attendance: 13,055

24 October 2009 15:00

Worcester Warriors	22 – 26	Harlequins

Sixways Attendance: 10,010

24 October 2009 15:15

London Irish	18 – 12	Leicester Tigers

Madejski Stadium Attendance: 16,199

24 October 2009 17:35

Gloucester	6 – 35	London Wasps

Kingsholm Attendance: 11,982

25 October 2009 15:00

Saracens	21 – 15	Leeds Carnegie

Vicarage Road Attendance: 7,123

Round 7

30 October 2009 19:45

Sale Sharks	28 – 23	Gloucester

Edgeley Park Attendance: 7,222

31 October 2009 14:15

Bath	11 – 12	Saracens

Recreation Ground Attendance: 11,700

31 October 2009 15:00

Harlequins	9 – 9	London Irish

Twickenham Stoop Attendance: 14,282

31 October 2009 17:35

Leicester Tigers	29 – 15	Northampton Saints

Welford Road Attendance: 23,641

1 November 2009 13:15

London Wasps	9 – 15	Leeds Carnegie

Adams Park Attendance: 7,616

1 November 2009 15:00

Newcastle Falcons	14 – 3	Worcester Warriors

Kingston Park Attendance: 4,924

Round 8

20 November 2009 19:45

Gloucester	12 – 9	Leicester Tigers

Kingsholm Attendance: 12,521

20 November 2009 20:00

Worcester Warriors	12 – 12	Bath

Sixways Attendance: 10,194

21 November 2009 13:00

Northampton Saints	26 – 17	Harlequins

Franklin’s Gardens Attendance: 13,040

22 November 2009 15:00

Leeds Carnegie	17 – 24	Sale Sharks

Headingley Attendance: 5,955

22 November 2009 15:00

London Irish	11 – 15	Newcastle Falcons

Madejski Stadium Attendance: 9,425

22 November 2009 15:00

Saracens	22 – 6	London Wasps

Vicarage Road Attendance: 9,786

Round 9

27 November 2009 20:00

Newcastle Falcons	8 – 28	Northampton Saints

Kingston Park Attendance: 6,522

27 November 2009 20:00

Worcester Warriors	12 – 12	Saracens

Sixways Attendance: 10,027

28 November 2009 15:00

Harlequins	35 – 29	Gloucester

Twickenham Stoop Attendance: 11,854

28 November 2009 15:00

Leicester Tigers	39 – 6	Leeds Carnegie

Welford Road Attendance: 18,408

28 November 2009 17:35

Bath	0 – 16	London Irish

Recreation Ground Attendance: 11,700

Round 10

4 December 2009 19:30

Leeds Carnegie	27 – 30	Harlequins

Headingley Attendance: 5,090

5 December 2009 15:00

Gloucester	25 – 13	Newcastle Falcons

Kingsholm Attendance: 11,410

5 December 2009 15:00

London Irish	16 – 16	Worcester Warriors

Madejski Stadium Attendance: 8,561

5 December 2009 15:00

Northampton Saints	15 – 13	Bath

Franklin’s Gardens Attendance: 13,101

5 December 2009 17:35

Saracens	15 – 13	Sale Sharks

Vicarage Road Attendance: 7,101

6 December 2009 15:00

London Wasps	24 – 22	Leicester Tigers

Adams Park Attendance: 10,116

Round 11

26 December 2009 16:15

Worcester Warriors	6 – 26	Northampton Saints

Sixways Attendance: 12,024

27 December 2009 14:00

Leicester Tigers	32 – 6	Sale Sharks

Welford Road Attendance: 24,000

27 December 2009 14:15

Bath	24 – 8	Gloucester

Recreation Ground Attendance: 11,700

27 December 2009 15:00

London Irish	23 – 19	Saracens

Madejski Stadium Attendance: 19,734

27 December 2009 15:00

Newcastle Falcons	15 – 16	Leeds Carnegie

Kingston Park Attendance: 8,766

27 December 2009 16:15

Harlequins	20 – 21	London Wasps

Twickenham Attendance: 76,716

Round 12

1 January 2010 17:30

Sale Sharks	21 – 16	Harlequins

Edgeley Park Attendance: 8,172

2 January 2010 15:00

Gloucester	13 – 13	Worcester Warriors

Kingsholm Attendance: 16,500

2 January 2010 15:00

Leeds Carnegie	15 – 20	Bath

Headingley Attendance: 7,593

2 January 2010 15:00

Northampton Saints	24 – 22	London Irish

Franklin’s Gardens Attendance: 13,457

2 January 2010 15:00

Saracens	15 – 22	Leicester Tigers

Vicarage Road Attendance: 14,013

3 January 2010 16:30

London Wasps	6 – 12	Newcastle Falcons

Adams Park Attendance: 8,416

Round 13

9 January 2010 15:15

Leicester Tigers	34 – 8	London Wasps

Welford Road Attendance: 24,000

Round 14

13 February 2010 15:00

Gloucester	46 – 6	Harlequins

Kingsholm Attendance: 11,125

13 February 2010 15:00

Northampton Saints	25 – 13	Newcastle Falcons

Franklin’s Gardens Attendance: 13,189

13 February 2010 15:00

Saracens	25 – 20	Worcester Warriors

Wembley Stadium Attendance: 40,163

14 February 2010 15:00

Leeds Carnegie	9 – 14	Leicester Tigers

Headingley Attendance: 5,265

14 February 2010 16:30

London Irish	22 – 35	Bath

Madejski Stadium Attendance: 10,033

14 February 2010 16:30

London Wasps	22 – 16	Sale Sharks

Adams Park Attendance: 7,173

Round 15

19 February 2010 19:45

Sale Sharks	10 – 19	Leeds Carnegie

Edgeley Park Attendance: 7,426

20 February 2010 14:15

Bath	37 – 13	Worcester Warriors

Recreation Ground Attendance: 11,700

20 February 2010 15:00

Harlequins	13 – 6	Northampton Saints

Twickenham Stoop Attendance: 12,935

20 February 2010 15:00

Leicester Tigers	33 – 11	Gloucester

Welford Road Attendance: 22,320

20 February 2010 17:30

Newcastle Falcons	12 – 12	London Irish

Kingston Park Attendance: 5,168

21 February 2010 15:00

London Wasps	9 – 0	Saracens

Adams Park Attendance: 8,530

Round 16

26 February 2010 20:00

Worcester Warriors	13 – 0	Newcastle Falcons

Sixways Attendance: 10,255

27 February 2010 15:00

Gloucester	47 – 3	Sale Sharks

Kingsholm Attendance: 10,548

27 February 2010 18:00

Northampton Saints	19 – 3	Leicester Tigers

Franklin’s Gardens Attendance: 13,538

28 February 2010 14:00

Leeds Carnegie	26 – 10	London Wasps

Headingley Attendance: 4,135

28 February 2010 15:00

London Irish	29 – 14	Harlequins

Madejski Stadium Attendance: 12,373

28 February 2010 15:00

Saracens	14 – 16	Bath

Vicarage Road Attendance: 8,864

Round 17

6 March 2010 15:00

Harlequins	14 – 11	Worcester Warriors

Twickenham Stoop Attendance: 11,274

6 March 2010 17:35

Leicester Tigers	35 – 19	London Irish

Welford Road Attendance: 23,314

7 March 2010 14:30

Sale Sharks	7 – 15	Northampton Saints

Edgeley Park Attendance: 7,109

7 March 2010 15:00

Leeds Carnegie	19 – 12	Saracens

Headingley Attendance: 4,031

7 March 2010 15:00

London Wasps	24 – 19	Gloucester

Adams Park Attendance: 8,541

7 March 2010 15:00

Newcastle Falcons	13 – 17	Bath

Kingston Park Attendance: 7,745

Rearranged fixture

19 March 2010 19:45

Sale Sharks	19 – 8	London Wasps

Edgeley Park Attendance: 7,493

Round 18

27 March 2010 14:15

Bath	24 – 13	Harlequins

Recreation Ground Attendance: 11,700

27 March 2010 15:00

Gloucester	19 – 0	Leeds Carnegie

Kingsholm Attendance: 11,751

27 March 2010 15:00

Worcester Warriors	18 – 39	Leicester Tigers

Sixways Attendance: 11,530

27 March 2010 17:30

Northampton Saints	14 – 9	London Wasps

Franklin’s Gardens Attendance: 13,451

28 March 2010 15:00

London Irish	38 – 0	Sale Sharks

Madejski Stadium Attendance: 21,535

28 March 2010 15:00

Saracens	58 – 15	Newcastle Falcons

Vicarage Road Attendance: 8,565

Rearranged fixture

31 March 2010 20:00

Newcastle Falcons	25 – 13	Gloucester

Kingston Park Attendance: 4,275

Round 19

2 April 2010 19:45

Sale Sharks	17 – 3	Worcester Warriors

Edgeley Park Attendance: 7,291

3 April 2010 15:00

Harlequins	23 – 14	Newcastle Falcons

Twickenham Stoop Attendance: 10,391

3 April 2010 15:00

Leeds Carnegie	7 – 14	Northampton Saints

Headingley Attendance: 5,724

3 April 2010 15:00

Leicester Tigers	43 – 20	Bath

Welford Road Attendance: 22,811

3 April 2010 17:30

Gloucester	29 – 28	Saracens

Kingsholm Attendance: 13,338

4 April 2010 13:30

London Wasps	33 – 22	London Irish

Adams Park Attendance: 9,924

Rearranged fixtures

9 April 2010 19:45

Sale Sharks	19 – 30	Saracens

Edgeley Park Attendance: 6,952

10 April 2010 14:00

Harlequins	46 – 11	Leeds Carnegie

Twickenham Stoop Attendance: 10,237

10 April 2010 15:00

Worcester Warriors	13 – 23	London Irish

Sixways Attendance: 9,841

Round 20

17 April 2010 14:15

Bath	34 – 15	Sale Sharks

Recreation Ground Attendance: 11,700

17 April 2010 15:00

Northampton Saints	38 – 23	Gloucester

Franklin’s Gardens Attendance: 13,460

17 April 2010 15:00

Worcester Warriors	20 – 24	London Wasps

Sixways Attendance: 10,428

17 April 2010 17:30

Saracens	37 – 18	Harlequins

Wembley Stadium Attendance: 47,106

18 April 2010 15:00

London Irish	13 – 23	Leeds Carnegie

Madejski Stadium Attendance: 8,898

18 April 2010 15:00

Newcastle Falcons	7 – 31	Leicester Tigers

Kingston Park Attendance: 6,825

Rearranged fixture

20 April 2010 20:00

Bath	21 – 20	Northampton Saints

Recreation Ground Attendance: 11,615

Round 21

23 April 2010 19:45

Sale Sharks	30 – 32	Newcastle Falcons

Edgeley Park Attendance: 9,336

24 April 2010 15:00

Gloucester	34 – 20	London Irish

Kingsholm Attendance: 15,090

24 April 2010 15:00

Leicester Tigers	40 – 22	Harlequins

Welford Road Attendance: 22,604

24 April 2010 15:00

Northampton Saints	27 – 28	Saracens

Franklin’s Gardens Attendance: 13,541

24 April 2010 17:30

London Wasps	19 – 35	Bath

Twickenham Attendance: 60,208

25 April 2010 15:00

Leeds Carnegie	12 – 10	Worcester Warriors

Headingley Attendance: 10,146

Round 22

8 May 2010 15:00

Bath	39 – 3	Leeds Carnegie

Recreation Ground Attendance: 11,700

8 May 2010 15:00

Harlequins	35 – 20	Sale Sharks

Twickenham Stoop Attendance: 12,795

8 May 2010 15:00

Leicester Tigers	23 – 32	Saracens

Welford Road Attendance: 24,000

8 May 2010 15:00

London Irish	7 – 31	Northampton Saints

Madejski Stadium Attendance: 14,300

8 May 2010 15:00

Newcastle Falcons	21 – 25	London Wasps

Kingston Park Attendance: 6,412

8 May 2010 15:00

Worcester Warriors	22 – 23	Gloucester

Sixways Attendance: 12,024

Play-offs

Semi-finals

16 May 2010 13:30

Northampton Saints	19 – 21	Saracens
Try: Tonga'uiha 40' m, Mujati 56' m Pen: Myler (3/3) 6', 41', 51'	Report	Try: Goode 15' c, Wyles 47' c, Brits 76' c Con: Jackson (3/3)

Franklin's Gardens, Northampton Attendance: 13,541 Referee: Wayne Barnes

---

16 May 2010 16:00

Leicester Tigers	15 – 6	Bath
Pen: Flood (5/6) 22', 36', 59', 63', 72'	Report	Pen: Barkley (2/4) 11', 20'

Welford Road, Leicester Attendance: 21,575 Referee: Chris White

Final

29 May 2010 17:30

Leicester Tigers	33 – 27	Saracens
Try: Smith 13' c Youngs 27' c Hipkiss 76' c Con: Flood (3/3) Pen: Flood (4/6) 3', 19', 47', 57'	Report	Try: Joubert (2) 17' m, 49' c Con: Jackson (1/2) Pen: Jackson (5/6) 2', 9', 25', 70', 75'

Twickenham, London Attendance: 81,600 [2] Referee: Dave Pearson

Total Season Attendances

Club	Home Games	Total	Average	Highest	Lowest	% Capacity
Bath	11	128,215	11,656	11,700	11,300	99%
Gloucester	11	138,445	12,586	16,500	10,548	76%
Harlequins	11	190,701	17,336	76,716	9,209	81%
Leeds Carnegie	11	66,501	6,046	10,146	4,031	27%
Leicester Tigers	12	268,647	22,387	24,000	17,974	93%
London Irish	11	147,334	13,394	21,535	8,561	55%
London Wasps	11	204,775	18,616	67,684	7,173	81%
Newcastle Falcons	11	66,959	6,087	8,766	4,275	60%
Northampton Saints	11	144,346	13,122	13,541	12,073	96%
Sale Sharks	11	83,704	7,609	9,336	6,924	70%
Saracens	11	263,013	23,910	67,684	7,101	50%
Worcester Warriors	11	115,937	10,540	12,024	9,510	87%

Individual statistics

Top points scorers

Player	Team	Points
Jimmy Gopperth	Newcastle Falcons	219
Toby Flood	Leicester Tigers	216
Nicky Robinson	Gloucester	198

Top try scorers

Player	Team	Tries
Chris Ashton	Northampton Saints	16
Joe Maddock	Bath	11
Matt Banahan	Bath	10

References

1. Standley, James (2010-05-29). "Leicester 33–27 Saracens". BBC Sport (BBC). Retrieved 2010-05-31.
2. http://www.guinnesspremiership.com/news/13748.php

External links

• Official site
• Match Attendance Figures