women
Premiership-womens-rugby
Game against Saracens Bristol Bears will be an exciting affair on Saturday, not least because they are competing in JAECOO PWR Next Gen Cup semi-final, but because both sides welcome returning stars.
Bristol Bears will see the return of the women’s Rugby World Cup 2025 winner Abbie Ward, who will play for the first time since welcoming her second daughter Lila in July.
The second row will start and her return comes just two weeks after team-mate Lark Atkin-Davis, who will also start in the semi-final, returned following the birth of her daughter Olive.
For Saracens, scrum-half Ella Wrywas will start from the bench in the crunch match after a long injury lay-off. The 27-year-old missed all of last season.
She said: “I’m extremely grateful to finally be back on the court. There were definitely times when I didn’t know when, or if, that day would come, so it means a lot to be back out there with the girls.”
“I had incredible support around me all last year, and seeing the girls smash it in the cup gave me a lot of extra motivation to get back out there.”
Liz Crake also starts for Sarries in the front row after returning from her stint with the Red Roses during WXV Global Series 2026
Saracens, who are the defending champions of the cup, will be the favorites to reach the final with their unbeaten streak so far. Bristol, meanwhile, lost to Trailfinders Women in the first round of the pool tournament but beat Gloucester Hartpury and Harlequins to round off their results.
The knockout match will begin at 18:00 GMT on Saturday 31 September, with the winner taking on the winner between Trailfinders and Sale Sharks in the second semi-final. That game starts at noon on Saturday.
The final will take place on Saturday, November 7, and the match will be played in the club with the highest number of seeds.