2008–09 Premiership Rugby


The 2008–09 Guinness Premiership was the 22nd season of the top flight of the English domestic rugby union competitions, played between September 2008 and May 2009. Round 1 included the London Double Header at Twickenham, between the four London teams.
This 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.

The previous season

gained promotion to the league this season by finishing top of the National Division One, taking the place of Leeds Carnegie who were relegated. In 2007–2008, Gloucester RFC finished top of the league but were beaten by Leicester Tigers in the semi-finals. London Wasps went on to beat Leicester Tigers 26–16 in the final.

Season synopsis

finished top of the league table, then were crowned Champions after defeating Bath 24–10 in the semi-final and London Irish 10–9 in the final at Twickenham.
Going into the season, the top six clubs were all assured of berths in the 2009–10 Heineken Cup. By advancing to the final of the 2008–09 competition, Leicester secured a seventh place for England. The four Premiership semi-finalists—Leicester, Harlequins, London Irish, and Bath—plus Sale Sharks and Gloucester secured Heineken Cup berths. The seventh berth was secured by Northampton Saints when they defeated French side Bourgoin in the European Challenge Cup final on 22 May. The remaining clubs that will compete in the 2009–10 Premiership will compete in the 2009–10 Challenge Cup.
The club that finishes bottom of the table is relegated and replaced by the club that tops the second-level National Division One. This season, Bristol were relegated, to be replaced by Leeds Carnegie, which won promotion at the first opportunity.

Teams

, having won the 2007–08 National Division One, replaced Leeds Carnegie, who were relegated last season after finishing bottom of the table.
ClubStadiumCapacityCity/Area
BathRecreation Ground10,600Bath, Somerset
BristolMemorial Stadium12,100Bristol
GloucesterKingsholm Stadium16,500Gloucester, Gloucestershire
HarlequinsTwickenham Stoop12,638Twickenham, London
Leicester TigersWelford Road17,500Leicester, Leicestershire
London IrishMadejski Stadium24,161Reading, Berkshire
London WaspsAdams Park10,000High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire
Newcastle FalconsKingston Park10,200Newcastle upon Tyne, Tyne and Wear
Northampton SaintsFranklin's Gardens13,600Northampton, Northamptonshire
Sale SharksEdgeley Park10,852Stockport, Greater Manchester
SaracensVicarage Road19,920Watford, Hertfordshire
Worcester WarriorsSixways12,068Worcester, Worcestershire

;Notes

Table

Results

Round 1

Round 2

Round 3

Round 4

Round 5

Round 6

Round 7

Round 8

Round 9

Round 10

Round 11

Round 12

Rearranged fixtures

Round 13

Round 14

Round 15

Round 16

Round 17

Round 18

Round 19

Rearranged fixtures

Round 20

Round 21

Round 22

Play-offs

Semi-finals

Final

Total Season Attendances

ClubHome
Games		TotalAverageHighestLowest% Capacity
Bath11116,60010,60010,60010,600100%
Bristol1182,4887,49911,8455,00562%
Gloucester11156,36614,21516,50012,26086%
Harlequins12180,37315,03150,0009,49791%
Leicester Tigers12209,75617,48018,81616,32892%
London Irish11165,92515,08452,0877,56348%
London Wasps11102,4159,31010,0007,66893%
Newcastle Falcons1167,9496,1777,8044,62061%
Northampton Saints11145,75113,25013,58212,90897%
Sale Sharks11100,4229,12910,8417,60284%
Saracens11148,12713,46652,0875,88150%
Worcester Warriors11114,00810,36412,0249,22286%

Top scorers

Top try scorers