Emmanuel Iyogun, Alex Coles, Tom Litchfield and George Hendy all return to Northampton Saints’ starting XV this weekend, recovering from their respective injuries as the men in Black, Green and Gold travel to Nottingham Rugby on Friday (14 February, kick-off: 7.45pm).
The quartet are among eight changes Phil Dowson makes to his side for the final pool round of the Premiership Rugby Cup, with Northampton heading to Lady Bay Stadium for the first time in the Club’s history.
Saints require a single league point in Nottingham to secure their place in the knock-out stages, but need maximum points from the match if they are to give themselves the best chance of claiming a home tie in the competition’s quarter-finals – with results elsewhere ultimately deciding Saints’ destination in the next round.
Angus Scott-Young leads Northampton for the third week running, starting at openside flanker for the Round 6 clash – with fellow back rowers Archie Benson and Iakopo Mapu set to make their first starts in Black, Green and Gold alongside him at blindside flanker and No.8 respectively.
Ed Prowse remains in Saints’ engine room for the trip to Nottingham to join incoming lock Coles there, with the latter donning a Black, Green and Gold shirt for the first time in almost a month.
In Saints’ half-back berths, Tom James and George Makepeace-Cubitt start for Northampton for the third consecutive week at scrum-half and fly-half respectively, while Litchfield comes into the midfield for the men in Black, Green and Gold alongside Charlie Savala.
Rafe Witheat is promoted to Northampton’s starting line-up this weekend and joins Tom Seabrook on Saints’ wings for the match against Nottingham, and incoming Hendy completes the line-up at fullback for the clash at Lady Bay.
Dowson names a blend of youth and experience on his bench for Round 6 match, with the likes of Henry Walker and Tom West joined there by Jonny Weimann, Bill Pasco and Will Glister – with Tom Pearson also making his return to Saints’ side amongst the replacements.
Tickets for Friday’s clash remain available direct from Nottingham Rugby – with prices starting at £16 adult / £3 juniors HERE.
NOTTINGHAM RUGBY vs NORTHAMPTON SAINTS
Premiership Rugby Cup, Round 6
Friday 14 February, 2025
Lady Bay Stadium
Kick-off: 7.45pm
15 George Hendy
14 Rafe Witheat
13 Tom Litchfield
12 Charlie Savala
11 Tom Seabrook
10 George Makepeace-Cubitt
9 Tom James
1 Emmanuel Iyogun
2 Craig Wright
3 Elliot Millar Mills
4 Ed Prowse
5 Alex Coles
6 Archie Benson
7 Angus Scott-Young (c)
8 Iakopo Mapu
Replacements:
16 Henry Walker
17 Tom West
18 Beltus Nonleh
19 Tom Pearson
20 Fyn Brown
21 Jonny Weimann
22 Billy Pasco
23 Will Glister
Not available for selection:
Emeka Atuanya, George Furbank, Sam Graham, Callum Hunter-Hill, Archie McParland, Chunya Munga, Toby Thame, and Robbie Smith.
International duty:
Tommy Freeman, Alex Mitchell, Henry Pollock, Ollie Sleightholme, Fin Smith (all England), Aiden Ainsworth-Cave and Ollie Scola (both England U20s).
NOTTINGHAM TEAM TO FACE SAINTS:
15 Ryan Olowofela, 14 David Williams (c), 13 Jack Stapley, 12 Javiah Pohe, 11 Harry Graham, 10 Matthew Arden, 9 Will Yarnell; 1 Kai Owen, 2 Harry Clayton, 3 Dan Richardson, 4 Jack Shine, 5 Sebastian Ferreira, 6 Sam Green, 7 Nathan Tweedy (vc), 8 James Cherry.
Replacements: 16 Antonio Harris, 17 Aniseko Sio, 18 Xavier Valentine, 19 Jay Ecclesfield, 20 Kody Vereti, 21 Toby Venner, 22 Tom Threlfall, 23 Sam Mercer.
Referee: Andy Wigley
Assistant referees: Andrew Jackson and Iain Kiy
No.4: Andrew Torrens
