Premier 15s expecting October 10 return with clubs 'playing locally where possible'

England’s elite women’s rugby competition, the Premier 15s, is expected to start its 2020-21 season on October 10 with clubs "playing locally where possible", Telegraph Sport understands.

It is thought the Rugby Football Union will unveil fixtures for the women’s premiership at the end of this month, coordinating them with the release of the fixture schedule for the 2020-21 Gallagher Premiership season, which begins on the weekend of November 20-22.

“Unless anything goes wrong, we’re now prepping for playing,” a source from one Premier 15s club told Telegraph Sport. “It’s pretty imminent. October 10 is where we’re heading, but we won’t get any fixtures released until the end of September. The hope is that we’ll be on the field in three weeks.”

The RFU confirmed to Telegraph Sport it was targeting an October start date and that it was working with Premiership clubs to schedule double-headers between men’s and women’s sides.

As tighter local restrictions across the Midlands and parts of northern England were announced by the Government on Friday, the RFU is anticipating women's fixtures to be "played locally where possible".

That scenario would mean London-based clubs such as Wasps, Harlequins and Saracens could meet in the opening rounds.

“Playing locally is the plan,” added the source. “DMP Durham Sharks and Sale Sharks haven’t got anyone to play with locally at the moment - so I don’t know if Worcester will be considered local enough to Sale - but playing locally is the expectation.

“We might have to put our squad on two coaches, but that then doubles the amount of money you’re spending on transport. These expenses are really important to consider.

"For a southern team travelling overnight to DMP Sharks in Durham, players won’t be able to share rooms, they’ll all have to be separate. All these kinds of things add to the expense of it.”

The elite amateur league is still seeking a sponsor after crisp brand Tyrrells ended its three-year partnership back in May, two months after the women’s season was declared null and void due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Should it get up and running next month, for the first time in its three-year history, Premier 15s games would overlap with Women’s Six Nations matches, which were rescheduled after the championship was suspended when the pandemic hit back in March. 

That would see clubs such as Harlequins and Saracens lose a number of international players ahead of England’s rearranged fixture against Italy on October 31, with Wales and Scotland also in action on that date. Bristol Bears, who have a large contingent of Welsh players, are likely to be affected.

“The season is going to be interesting and exciting,” said the source. “Two games are going to lap with autumn internationals and rescheduled Six Nations matches - that will make for some interesting club match-ups.”