Northampton Saints Academy get back to action this week, as their 2025/26 season gets underway with the RFU Academy Festival at Malvern College.
The festival – that runs from Monday 28 July – is the biggest gathering of England’s rugby pathway players and celebrates the country’s development system – giving the Club‘s home-grown players an exciting opportunity to find their feet in age-grade rugby and showcase their talent before the PREM Rugby U18 Academy League kicks off in August.
Malvern has become a well-trodden path for Saints’ up and coming talent, with the likes of Henry Pollock and Archie McParland cutting their teeth at the Festival in recent seasons.
Saints’ Under-18s are set to feature in their first clashes on Monday with matches against both Bath Rugby and Leinster Rugby, before Tuesday sees Northampton’s Under-17s play a rotation of six games.
On the festival; Saints’ U18s Head Coach, Charlie Reed, said: “The Festival presents a brilliant opportunity for our players to showcase what we’ve been working on.”
“While we always want to win games, for us, this festival is more about focusing on the performances rather than the result."
Charlie Reed, U18s Head Coach
“For a lot of these players it will be a first opportunity to play together, showcase what they’re about and find their feet within and develop those fundamental skills. That will stand us in good stead as we enter the league season and creates a solid foundation for us to move forward this season.
“Last season was obviously a hugely successful one for us as an Academy system, with the Club’s first U18s title win after reaching four consecutive finals. But, for us as a coaching group, the most pleasing thing was how the players developed within that success and how they grew as individuals.
“We’ve got a proven track record of identifying and developing talent at the Club, and a new season always gives you fresh opportunities to do that as a coach. I’m already excited about this group and I’m looking forward to seeing them get their first run out at Malvern next week.”
