Saints end Bath's run
Northampton Saints followed up their East Midlands derby success with an impressive 24-6 over previously unbeaten Bath.
Exeter Chiefs might have fallen to defeat on the opening day of the season but they have put that behind them impressively earning a second successive bonus-point win as they beat Worcester Warriors 41-10.
A convincing Sale Sharks put in their best performance of the Premiership season to date to secure a bonus-point victory over London Irish, their first of the campaign.
We look at all the Friday matches!
Northampton Saints 24-6 Bath
Northampton Saints followed up their East Midlands derby success with an impressive 24-6 over previously unbeaten Bath.
Having begun their Premiership season with a thumping loss to Saracens, Saints have bounced back impressively with consecutive wins on home soil.
David Ribbans was the unlikely hero in this encounter, as Saints scored three tries through their second rows.
And it was left to George North to wrap up the bonus point when he crossed five minutes from time to complete a perfect night for Jim Mallinder's side.
It had taken them just four minutes to break the deadlock, with Courtney Lawes using his height to reach over after a brilliant break from Tom Collins, fed on the inside after a line-out.
Harry Mallinder missed the conversion though, and it was Bath who took the lead thanks to two Rhys Priestland penalties.
They were dominating at scrum-time, but it was Saints who went in ahead at the break as Ribbans showed his strength to power over right before half-time.
Mallinder's conversion made it 12-6, and soon after half-time it was Ribbans who crossed again, with the Bath defence no longer able to cope – despite the best efforts of debutant Sam Underhill.
The openside had been a thorn in Northampton's side all evening, but was forced off late after a lengthy delay.
Once play had restarted, Northampton threw everything at their visitors in search of a bonus point. It finally came after good continuity from Luther Burrell and Mallinder to put North over.
That ensured Saints went away with all five points, while Bath saw their fine start to the season ended in Round Three.
The scorers:
For Northampton Saints:
Tries: Lawes, Ribbans 2, North
Cons: Mallinder 2
For Bath:
Pens: Priestland 2
Teams:
Bath: 15 Anthony Watson, 14 Semesa Rokoduguni, 13 Jonathan Joseph, 12 Ben Tapuai, 11 Matt Banahan, 10 Rhys Priestland, 9 Kahn Fotuali'i, 8 Taulupe Faletau, 7 Sam Underhill, 6 Matt Garvey (captain), 5 Elliott Stooke, 4 Charlie Ewels, 3 Anthony Perenise, 2 Tom Dunn, 1 Beno Obano.
Replacements: 16 Jack Walker, 17 Nick Auterac, 18 Scott Andrews, 19 James Phillips, 20 Paul Grant, 21 Darren Allinson, 22 Freddie Burns, 23 Max Clark.
Northampton Saints: 15 Ahsee Tuala, 14 George North, 13 Rob Horne, 12 Luther Burrell, 11 Tom Collins, 10 Harry Mallinder, 9 Nic Groom, 8 Teimana Harrison, 7 Jamie Gibson, 6 Courtney Lawes (captain), 5 David Ribbans, 4 Michael Paterson, 3 Paul Hill, 2 Mikey Haywood, 1 Alex Waller.
Replacements: 16 Reece Marshall, 17 Campese Ma'afu, 18 Kieran Brookes, 19 Christian Day, 20 Lewis Ludlam, 21 Cobus Reinach, 22 James Grayson, 23 Ben Foden.
Referee: Thomas Foley
Assistant referees: Jack Makepeace & Simon McConnell
TMO: Graham Hughes
Worcester Warriors 10-41 Exeter Chiefs
Exeter Chiefs might have fallen to defeat on the opening day of the season but they have put that behind them impressively earning a second successive bonus-point win as they beat Worcester Warriors 41-10.
Dominant from the off, Chiefs crossed three times in the first half, first through Sam Simmonds, then Jack Nowell and Jonny Hill right on the stroke of half-time.
Trailing 24-3 at the break, Warriors needed a response, and got one when Biyi Alo scored for the second straight week, with Sam Olver converting.
But it was Exeter who proved the stronger and the secured the bonus point when Olly Woodburn went over just after the hour, before Simmonds completed his double to wrap up a convincing win.
The visitors had controlled much of the first half, with Simmonds showing his power and pace to crash over and give Chiefs reward for their territorial dominance.
Gareth Steenson's conversion made it 10-3 after an early penalty apiece, and he was on target again after Nowell's try, made by a darting break from Nic White.
And just before half-time it was Hill who ran in Exeter's third, galloping down the left wing after Chiefs had opened up some space – Steenson again converted.
While Alo crossed with impressive power early in the second half, it seemed only a matter of time before Chiefs secured their bonus point, and it duly came just after the hour.
A brilliant chip over the top from Henry Slade was collected by Ian Whitten. He found Woodburn inside him and the winger made it three tries in as many games to stretched the lead to 34-10.
With Woodburn over, Exeter had done what they came for, but they didn't slow up, as Simmonds helped himself to a second to take his tally to seven in his last ten games.
Chiefs did lose Stuart Townsend to a yellow card late on, but it made no difference to the final result.
The scorers:
For Worcester Warriors:
Try: Alo
Con: Olver
Pen: Olver
For Exeter Chiefs:
Tries: Simmonds 2, Nowell, Hill, Woodburn
Cons: Steenson 5
Pens: Steenson 2
Teams:
Worcester Warriors: 15 Josh Adams, 14 Perry Humphreys, 13 Jackson Willison, 12 Ben Te'o, 11 Bryce Heem, 10 Tom Heathcote, 9 Jonny Arr, 8 GJ van Velze, 7 Sam Lewis, 6 Matt Cox, 5 Pierce Phillips, 4 Donncha O'Callaghan (captain), 3 Biyi Alo, 2 Jack Singleton, 1 Ryan Bower.
Replacements: 16 Joe Taufete'e, 17 Ethan Waller, 18 Gareth Milasinovich, 19 Christian Scotland-Williamson, 20 Alafoti Faosiliva, 21 Peter Stringer, 22 Sam Olver, 23 Jamie Shillcock.
Exeter Chiefs: 15 Phil Dollman, 14 Jack Nowell, 13 Henry Slade, 12 Ian Whitten, 11 Olly Woodburn, 10 Gareth Steenson, 9 Nic White, 8 Sam Simmonds, 7 Don Armand, 6 Dave Dennis, 5 Jonny Hill, 4 Mitch Lees, 3 Tomas Francis, 2 Jack Yeandle (captain), 1 Carl Rimmer.
Replacements: 16 Elvis Taione, 17 Ben Moon, 18 Harry Williams, 19 Sam Skinner, 20 Matt Kvesic, 21 Stuart Townsend, 22 Max Bodilly, 23 Lachie Turner.
Referee: Ian Tempest
Assistant referees: Adam Leal & Philip Waters
TMO: Keith Lewis
Sale Sharks 36-7 London Irish
A convincing Sale Sharks put in their best performance of the Premiership season to date to secure a bonus-point victory over London Irish, their first of the campaign.
Steve Diamond's side sparkled on a crisp night, running in five tries in a display to dazzle their home crowd under the Friday night lights, including a double for Denny Solomona.
The contest began at a frenetic pace and, after AJ MacGinty had kicked an early penalty, Sale raced into a healthy lead.
Sharks built a rolling maul too strong for the visiting defence, perfectly placed to allow prop Ross Harrison to bundle over for a rare try on 13 minutes, his first for the club.
Five minutes later, a sharp passing combination between Faf de Klerk and Solomona sent the England international speedster under the posts to open up a 17-point advantage from which they were to never look back.
And Solomona was not to be done there, capitalising on a passing error from the Exiles deep in opposition territory, sweeping up and running the length of the field for a second score of the night.
Irish came out after half-time with intent but after Blair Cowan was sin-binned, Sale spread the play and Josh Charnley broke a tackle and touched down to bag a bonus point.
Nick Kennedy's outfit got off and running with a penalty try after a spell of incessant pressure, though were reduced to 14 men after Cowan was sent off.
That allowed Jennings to get in on the act late on, scoring from a wide position after good work from replacement Mike Haley, with MacGinty profiting with 11 points from the boot.
The scorers:
For Sale Sharks:
Tries: Harrison, Solomona 2, Charnley, Jennings
Cons: MacGinty 4
Pen: MacGinty
For London Irish:
Try: Penalty try
Con: Penalty try doesn't require a conversion
Teams:
Sale Sharks: 15 Will Addison (captain), 14 Denny Solomona, 13 Sam James, 12 Mark Jennings, 11 Josh Charnley, 10 AJ MacGinty, 9 Francois de Klerk, 8 Josh Strauss, 7 Ben Curry, 6 Jono Ross, 5 Josh Beaumont, 4 Bryn Evans, 3 Alex Tarus, 2 Marc Jones, 1 Ross Harrison.
Replacements: 16 Rob Webber, 17 James Flynn, 18 Halani Aulika, 19 Andre Ostrikov, 20 Tom Curry, 21 Thomas Ioane, 22 Will Cliff, 23 Mike Haley.
London Irish: 15 Tommy Bell, 14 Alex Lewington, 13 Aseli Tikoirotuma, 12 Luke McLean, 11 Topsy Ojo, 10 James Marshall, 9 Brendan McKibbin, 8 Ofisa Treviranus 7 Blair Cowan, 6 Mike Coman, 5 Sebastian De Chaves, 4 Franco van der Merwe, 3 Ben Franks (captain), 2 Dave Porecki, 1 Danny Hobbs-Awoyemi.
Replacements: 16 David Paice, 17 Harry Elrington, 18 Petrus Du Plessis, 19 Josh McNally, 20 Conor Gilsenan, 21 Scott Steele, 22 Greig Tonks 23 Napolioni Nalaga.
Referee: Wayne Barnes
Assistant teferees: Hamish Smales & Wayne Falla
TMO: Stuart Terheege
Source: @premrugby
Exeter Chiefs might have fallen to defeat on the opening day of the season but they have put that behind them impressively earning a second successive bonus-point win as they beat Worcester Warriors 41-10.
Dominant from the off, Chiefs crossed three times in the first half, first through Sam Simmonds, then Jack Nowell and Jonny Hill right on the stroke of half-time.
Trailing 24-3 at the break, Warriors needed a response, and got one when Biyi Alo scored for the second straight week, with Sam Olver converting.
But it was Exeter who proved the stronger and the secured the bonus point when Olly Woodburn went over just after the hour, before Simmonds completed his double to wrap up a convincing win.
The visitors had controlled much of the first half, with Simmonds showing his power and pace to crash over and give Chiefs reward for their territorial dominance.
Gareth Steenson's conversion made it 10-3 after an early penalty apiece, and he was on target again after Nowell's try, made by a darting break from Nic White.
And just before half-time it was Hill who ran in Exeter's third, galloping down the left wing after Chiefs had opened up some space – Steenson again converted.
While Alo crossed with impressive power early in the second half, it seemed only a matter of time before Chiefs secured their bonus point, and it duly came just after the hour.
A brilliant chip over the top from Henry Slade was collected by Ian Whitten. He found Woodburn inside him and the winger made it three tries in as many games to stretched the lead to 34-10.
With Woodburn over, Exeter had done what they came for, but they didn't slow up, as Simmonds helped himself to a second to take his tally to seven in his last ten games.
Chiefs did lose Stuart Townsend to a yellow card late on, but it made no difference to the final result.
The scorers:
For Worcester:
Try: Alo
Con: Olver
Pen: Olver
For Exeter:
Tries: Simmonds 2, Nowell, Hill, Woodburn
Cons: Steenson 5
Pens: Steenson 2
Teams:
Worcester: 15 Josh Adams, 14 Perry Humphreys, 13 Jackson Willison, 12 Ben Te'o, 11 Bryce Heem, 10 Tom Heathcote, 9 Jonny Arr, 8 GJ van Velze, 7 Sam Lewis, 6 Matt Cox, 5 Pierce Phillips, 4 Donncha O'Callaghan (captain), 3 Biyi Alo, 2 Jack Singleton, 1 Ryan Bower.
Replacements: 16 Joe Taufete'e, 17 Ethan Waller, 18 Gareth Milasinovich, 19 Christian Scotland-Williamson, 20 Alafoti Faosiliva, 21 Peter Stringer, 22 Sam Olver, 23 Jamie Shillcock.
Exeter: 15 Phil Dollman, 14 Jack Nowell, 13 Henry Slade, 12 Ian Whitten, 11 Olly Woodburn, 10 Gareth Steenson, 9 Nic White, 8 Sam Simmonds, 7 Don Armand, 6 Dave Dennis, 5 Jonny Hill, 4 Mitch Lees, 3 Tomas Francis, 2 Jack Yeandle (captain), 1 Carl Rimmer.
Replacements: 16 Elvis Taione, 17 Ben Moon, 18 Harry Williams, 19 Sam Skinner, 20 Matt Kvesic, 21 Stuart Townsend, 22 Max Bodilly, 23 Lachie Turner.
Referee: Ian Tempest
Assistant Referees: Adam Leal & Philip Waters
TMO: Keith Lewis
Sale Sharks 36-7 London Irish
A convincing Sale Sharks put in their best performance of the Premiership season to date to secure a bonus-point victory over London Irish, their first of the campaign.
Steve Diamond's side sparkled on a crisp night, running in five tries in a display to dazzle their home crowd under the Friday night lights, including a double for Denny Solomona.
The contest began at a frenetic pace and, after AJ MacGinty had kicked an early penalty, Sale raced into a healthy lead.
Sharks built a rolling maul too strong for the visiting defence, perfectly placed to allow prop Ross Harrison to bundle over for a rare try on 13 minutes, his first for the club.
Five minutes later, a sharp passing combination between Faf de Klerk and Solomona sent the England international speedster under the posts to open up a 17-point advantage from which they were to never look back.
And Solomona was not to be done there, capitalising on a passing error from the Exiles deep in opposition territory, sweeping up and running the length of the field for a second score of the night.
Irish came out after half-time with intent but after Blair Cowan was sin-binned, Sale spread the play and Josh Charnley broke a tackle and touched down to bag a bonus point.
Nick Kennedy's outfit got off and running with a penalty try after a spell of incessant pressure, though were reduced to 14 men after Cowan was sent off.
That allowed Jennings to get in on the act late on, scoring from a wide position after good work from replacement Mike Haley, with MacGinty profiting with 11 points from the boot.
The scorers:
For Sale:
Tries: Harrison, Solomona 2, Charnley, Jennings
Cons: MacGinty 4
Pens: MacGinty
For London Irish:
Try: Penalty try
Red card: Cowan
Teams:
Sale: 15 Will Addison (captain), 14 Denny Solomona, 13 Sam James, 12 Mark Jennings, 11 Josh Charnley, 10 AJ MacGinty, 9 Faf de Klerk, 8 Josh Strauss, 7 Ben Curry, 6 Jono Ross, 5 Josh Beaumont, 4 Bryn Evans, 3 Alex Tarus, 2 Marc Jones, 1 Ross Harrison.
Replacements: 16 Rob Webber, 17 James Flynn, 18 Halani Aulika, 19 Andre Ostrikov, 20 Tom Curry, 21 Thomas Ioane, 22 Will Cliff, 23 Mike Haley.
London Irish: 15 Tommy Bell, 14 Alex Lewington, 13 Aseli Tikoirotuma, 12 Luke McLean, 11 Topsy Ojo, 10 James Marshall, 9 Brendan McKibbin, 8 Ofisa Treviranus 7 Blair Cowan, 6 Mike Coman, 5 Sebastian De Chaves, 4 Franco van der Merwe, 3 Ben Franks (captain), 2 Dave Porecki, 1 Danny Hobbs-Awoyemi.
Replacements: 16 David Paice, 17 Harry Elrington, 18 Petrus Du Plessis, 19 Josh McNally, 20 Conor Gilsenan, 21 Scott Steele, 22 Greig Tonks 23 Napolioni Nalaga.
Referee: Wayne Barnes
Assistant Referees: Hamish Smales & Wayne Falla
TMO: Stuart Terheege
Source: @premrugby
