Freeman on centre stage, Williams’ wizardry and Smith’s pain – Prem talking points

Tommy Freeman hasn’t started a Northampton game outside of center in a while.

He’ll probably not have to wait as long for his next midfield appearance.

Steve Borthwick, England’s coach, has been interested in using Freeman’s 24-year-old bulk, brain, and speed to make use of the teenager’s more conventional wing. Freeman is enthusiastic about the internal shift.

Both will use Phil Dowson’s arm to create more opportunities after his hat-trick against Bath.

Freeman shined in opposition to England’s current first-choice 13 Ollie Lawrence.

His first attempt was made using a running line that was razor-sharp and took three minutes. In the midst of heavy traffic, Joe Cokanasiga’s second was a show-go-and-spin. He ghosted outside Cokanasiga, fixed Santi Carreras, and dived over for his third.

Lawrence spilled forward with the tryline at his feet before nearly missing a Northampton fan’s face as he yelled the ball away in disgrace.

The Saints were fantastic, with the exception of Fin Smith and Alex Mitchell, who were both sidelined for first-choice.

At nine, Callum Chick was omnipresent in the back row, while Archie McParland buzzed waspishly around.

Their ecstatic celebrations were similarly stinging. Freeman and Henry Pollock both motioned for a video review after three attempts were rejected by the television match official.

Exeter finished second from the bottom of the table a year ago, with just one win out of nine matches.

The Chiefs defeated Leicester 24-10 to move up to second in the season’s renaissance at a sold-out Sandy Park.

The Chiefs could have easily gotten a four-try bonus point and the top spot in the year with a needless first-half push from Will Rigg and some slippy late handling from Campbell Ridl and Will Goodrick-Clarke.

Some observers saw Harvey Skinner, who is also Devon-born, as the weak point of an exciting Exeter backline before the season began.

However, the 28-year-old has only missed three Prem games this season and has once more played a key role in pulling strings, tweaking noses, and finding holes.

Reindeer hooves are not what they’re calling when they’re hooves are moving.

In a 36-27 defeat by Bristol at Ashton Gate, Newcastle won the opener of their 2025-26 campaign by scoring four tries.

The visitors took a 10-point lead into the break, were 17-12 up, and only had one more point lead.

Since his December arrival, Stephen Jones, the new attack coach, has paced and shaped their play more.

In his daily role as Scotland’s head coach, Gregor Townsend, an advisor to Red Bull, may find it interesting that wing Oli Spencer, age 21, scored two outstanding tries.

Search it out if you haven’t already seen it.

Tomos Williams, the Gloucester scrum-half, may not have reached the heights he did last season, but his off-load to set up Arthur Clark for a try in the Cherry and Whites’ 30-21 defeat by Saracens was pure off-the-cuff genius.

Williams swooned outside opposite number Ivan van Zyl, who had a touch with Max Malins, who had to turn around before rolling a delicious one-handed basketball pass over Clark.

Kingsholm’s enjoyment of the score, though, was difficult to say.

Saracens had made the announcement that Williams, who is now five points behind Williams in the Prem’s try assist standings, would instead play for them next season on Christmas Day.

The visitors’ social media team, who lean into their pantomime villain status, shared a photo of Williams laughing with fellow British and Irish Lion Jamie George after the final whistle.

Marcus Smith’s first three minutes turned out fairly well.

Luke Northmore scurried into Sale territory with a clever pass, Rodrigo Isgro found on the opposite wing, and a fine opportunism earned him the game’s opening try.

After 80 minutes, his face changed.

Smith had coughed up a horrendous blooper for Sale’s sixth try, failing to gather a routine backfield ball to allow a chasing Raffi Quirke to dot down. Sale was battered, bruised, and well beaten.

A few minutes prior, Smith bravely threw himself into the path of a stampeding Nathan Jibulu with a bang to the head.

As Sale scored 31 second-half points without answers, there were plenty of other tackles to make.

Smith will remain with the Harlequins until 2028, but the team will reorient him.

After a sixth defeat in eight league games, coach Jason Gilmore said, “There is no silver bullet to it; it is what we need to look at with our squad in the near future.”

“We need to look at what we have in store for the squad,” he said. Over the course of the six months of recruitment and retention, we have some options. We require “fighters” in the first place.