Prem bosses vote in secret as Saints prepare to defend title

Ten Premiership bosses have picked their champions, play-off teams and star men for the new season — without putting their names to it.

The anonymous votes of 10 directors of rugby, the senior coaches who run the rugby side at each Prem club, are at the centre of the latest Rugby Union Weekly with Ashy, Danny and Chris BBC Sounds. The 67-minute episode aired on Radio 5 Live on 21 September 2026 and is listed as available for over a year.

No names. No filters. The panel works through the survey pick for champions, the four clubs tipped to reach the play-offs, the shout for player of the season and the vote for best finisher. In rugby speak, the play-offs are the end-of-season knockout semi-finals and final that decide the title, while a finisher is the wide player trusted to score the tries in the tight corners.

It lands just in time. The 2026/27 Gallagher PREM season starts on the weekend of 25-27 September, with two matches on Friday 25 September Premiership Rugby. Northampton Saints go into the campaign as reigning champions and begin the defence of their title on that Friday night Premiership Rugby. The opening two rounds of the PREM Rugby Cup, the early-season competition that gives squads a run-out before the league, kicked off in early September.

There is plenty beyond the ballot. The trio debate whether England wing Tommy Freeman is worth his weight in gold, a nod to his value in attack, defence and the air. They also dig into one of rugby’s curious coaching patterns, why wingers so rarely end up as head coaches. It is a conversation about leadership, detail and where different positions learn to see the game.

They also react to news that defence coach Shaun Edwards is joining the Red Roses on a short-term deal after leaving France. The Red Roses are England’s women’s national team, and defence coaches shape the line speed, tackling shape and organisation without the ball.

For fans, this makes a neat primer for the days ahead. You do not need to know last season’s table or the ins and outs of contracts. Just ten insiders speaking freely because they cannot be identified, three familiar voices pulling the answers apart, and a title race about to start for real.