Premiership Rugby Best Bets - Semi-Finals

Fortunately for Northampton, they have needed little time to go from nought to 60 on the field. Indeed, their shock 41-17 loss to Leicester in mid-May was followed by a resounding 94-33 win over Bristol the following weekend. With 14 wins in 18 matches this season along with four wins in their last five home games against the Tigers, the home side will be confident. 

Leicester arrive for their playoff semi-final having missed out on the chance to snare a home tie against Bath rather than a trip to face Northampton. While a derby in the semi-final makes for a mouth-watering matchup, the Tigers would have preferred to have played in front of their own fans. As it is, Leicester must make the trip to face the Saints after defeats to Exeter (35-26) and Bath (24-22) saw the side stutter. 

It is also a major worry for the Tigers that they have lost three of their last four on the road in all competitions in a very disappointing run. While the Tigers did hammer their opponents on May 9, they have struggled for consistency since then, and I back Northampton's running rugby to cut Leicester to ribbons. 

Against the Chiefs at home, Bath have been excellent. Five wins in their last six home matches is an impressive run, with only a 23-14 loss back in September of 2025 ruining this streak. With 10 consecutive home wins across competitions heading into this one, Bath are the side to back. 

Exeter came out on top in the battle for a playoff spot with Saracens as their 32-12 win saw the former eliminate the latter. Their triumph, coupled with Leicester losing to Bath, saw the Chiefs leapfrog the Tigers into third, with this setting up our second derby of the weekend. Across the season, the Chiefs have secured 11 wins and 65 points. While they only finished the season four points behind Bath in second, the clubs felt like they had very different campaigns with Exeter fighting to the last minute for their place in the post-season. 

Against their opponents, Exeter will look to use their forward pack to hammer at Bath's defence to try to milk penalties and pin their hosts back. The boot of Henry Slade will be vital as the travelling side try to keep the scoreboard ticking over, while the Chiefs will likely target a Bath line-out that has not been at its best of late. The box-kicking battle will also be key, with both sides looking to win the territory game via the boot of their scrum-halves. To win, the Chiefs will need everything to be perfect if they are to seriously challenge, and I do not see them hitting the level they need to secure a berth in the final.