Prem round three: rampant scoring, Saracens' defensive reset and a royal pint

Premiership Rugby's third round this weekend saw teams combine for an average of 10 tries per match, BBC Sport reported on 12 October 2026. The round produced exceptionally high aggregate scores across five fixtures.

Ten seasons ago Northampton hosted Bath in round three and won 24-6, with Northampton scoring four tries from Courtney Lawes, George North and David Ribbans (twice) while Bath had two penalties from Rhys Priestland. By contrast, this weekend Northampton and Bath alone produced 18 tries in a 71-48 game, a 119-point aggregate that was the second highest in English top-flight history behind Northampton's 94-33 win over Bristol in May. Five of the 10 top-flight matches to exceed 100 points have come since the start of the 2023-24 season; looking back at that round of games from 2017-28 there were 26 tries across six matches (4.33 per game), while this weekend saw 50 tries in five games (10 per match), an increase on the first two rounds of this season which delivered an average of 9.3 tries per game — the highest-scoring start to an English top-flight campaign since Opta began gathering the statistic in 2007-08.

Northampton head coach Sam Vesty, whose speciality is attack, told BBC Sport after his side's win: "The game can be too slanted to attack." He added: "I don't want to watch basketball, but we saw some fantastic rugby on both sides." Vesty also commented on officiating and game speed: "I think officiating [is one factor]," he said. "The offside line is being reffed hotter; tackle height is lower so therefore people can keep the ball alive more quickly. Then there is the speed of the game - the ball is on a little longer so people are more fatigued. I also think there is more intent from teams, going out to score points, when that has not always been the case."

At Saracens, defence coach Adam Powell set out to change how the game is played in the Premiership, telling players he wanted defence to be a hallmark of the team as in their previous heyday and effectively reforming the 'Wolfpack'. Only Gloucester have conceded fewer points than Saracens so far, and Saracens' 30-7 victory over Bristol — in which they kept Bristol to seven points — was described as their most impressive defensive display of the season. Saracens showed physicality in the pack with new signing George Martin paired with 6ft 9in prospect Olamide Sodeke in the second row, while Maro Itoje impressed at blind-side flanker and Owen Farrell piloted the hosts from fly-half.

Bristol rested Pedro Rubiolo, AJ MacGinty and Steven Luatua because of concerns about their bodies holding up to playing on the artificial surface at the Stonex Stadium, and other clubs are avoiding selecting players with particular injury histories for games on artificial turf. Newcastle's pitch was relaid over the summer and Gloucester's first surface of that type was put down in 2021; Saracens' surface is now the oldest of its type in the Premiership, which may influence selection decisions for some clubs.

There were early-season minutes for the next generation of nine-men: after starting Northampton's first two games Archie McParland had a bench role in the win over Bath and came on for the final 20 minutes; the 21-year-old "would have toured with England this summer but for lacerated leg suffered in the Prem final win over Exeter." Charlie Bracken made his first start of the season for Saracens, playing 40 minutes and providing speedy service and well-judged bombs for brother Jack to chase. Both McParland and Bracken face competition for regular game time from team-mates Alex Mitchell and Tomos Williams respectively; 20-year-old Lucas Friday, who signed a new contract at Harlequins last month, may also see a clearer route into the first team.

After a round in which three of the five games finished within a winning margin of seven or fewer points, there is not one unbeaten side in the league and Sale saw off Harlequins 28-24 on Sunday. It is the first season with a salary floor as well as a salary cap, and the competition feels tighter and more competitive after some chasms in the table last time round.

A few entertaining snippets included full-back George Furbank's quicksilver hands drawing a gasp in Harlequins' improved outing, Bath full-back Santi Carreras producing more footballing brilliance, Newcastle Red Bulls wing Werner Kok's circus skills warm-up, and the Duke of Sussex taking in Leicester's win over Gloucester in the Ed Slater Cup with a plastic pint pot in hand. Listen to the latest Rugby Union Weekly podcast.