Now Northampton with their first attack of the game and it is more direct from Saints. 

A couple of powerful runs forward by Luther Burrell and Dylan Hartley result in Saints earning a penalty inside the Worcester 22.

A bright start from Worcester with a slick passing move putting Cooper Vuna in space, but his kick ahead is straight into touch.

The two early kick-offs at Sixways and Twickenham Stoop are off and running

The 2015-16 Premiership season is officially under way!

So the final few minutes for supporters to enjoy that pre-season optimism before the new season kicks off...

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If you are struggling in any walk of life, you turn to the best, and London Irish have looked to New Zealand for their new head coach.

Tom Coventry was part of the Super League side Chiefs' coaching set-up that won the Super Rugby title in 2012 and 2013.

“I’m pretty excited about this weekend," he told BBC Radio Berkshire. "It can’t come soon enough.

“The style of play is going to be really different here from that in Super Rugby and they’ll be differing expectations around certain parts of your game. They’ll be an expectation that your set piece is very strong and that’ll be something we’ll be judged on very early in the competition."

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It was 1996 when Bath were last crowned as the best side in England and were beaten at the final hurdle by Saracens last season.

England duo George Ford and Anthony Watson are thrown straight in to start against Exeter tomorrow after their World Cup exploits.

"We just need to get better at everything really," said Bath head coach Mike Ford.

"It's going to be quite tricky this year because of the condensed season and the consecutive games - we've also got the challenge of integrating the internationals back in our squad that have not been with us."

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Exeter Chiefs' progression took another step last season when they finished fifth, level on points with the third-placed Leicester and fourth-placed Saracens - can they better that this time around?

“The way we've played in the pre-season games has been pleasing, but now the phoney-war's over and we've got to see what genuine nick we're in,” head coach Rob Baxter told BBC Sport.

“I think the big challenge on where we end up in the league will be the other teams in a lot of ways, because when you start talking about top four and top six you've got to start talking about a lot of very good teams who then don't make the top four or top six because you're there.

“I’d like us to repeat the quality of our home performances, because that was a great foundation for us - we were very consistent.”

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Last year Saracens became the first team to secure the Premiership title having finished outside the top two in the table.

Mark McCall's troops have reached four finals in the last six seasons, can they reach Twickenham again next May?

"We've had some pretty big disappointments at the end of the season before last, losing two finals in a row, and those players and us as a group were able to come back from those disappointments," McCall told BBC Sport.

"It wasn't straightforward last season but we showed a lot of resilience to make sure we stayed on track. Hopefully those experiences will stand these players in good stead."

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Gloucester get their longest journey of the Premiership season out of the way early and Billy Twelvetrees skippers the side from fly-half, with Willi Heinz and Paddy McAllister handed debuts.

Returning from World Cup duty are Sione Kalamafoni, Ben Morgan and Jonny May, who are on the bench.

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Back with the action tonight and the later of the three matches, Newcastle Falcons name five summer signings in their team, including ex-All Black fly-half Mike Delany and former England international Mouritz Botha.

Taione Vea and Todd Clever also start as Dean Richards' side look to get off to a winning start in the North East.

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As the most successful club in the land, Leicester Tigers will have been disappointed to end a second successive season trophyless. Can Richard Cockerill's new recruits end that drought? 

"There have been wholesale changes at the Leicester Tigers this summer on and off the pitch," says BBC Radio Leicester's Martin Ballard.

"A new stand is going up fast and a new coaching structure sees former All Black Aaron Mauger return to the club, bringing with him defence coach Scott Hansen. 

"New signing from the Waratahs, Peter Betham, has grabbed the attention in pre-season and is one of a number of players who've moved to Welford Road, including Mike Williams, Opeti Fonui, Lachlan McCaffrey and Mike Fitzgerald - Brendan O'Connor and Jonno Kitto will also arrive in November after playing in the ITM Cup in New Zealand."

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Although Newcastle Falcons finished comfortably above relegated London Welsh, they will want to improve on their 11th-placed showing.

To address this, they have brought in 12 new arrivals over the summer including former All Black Mike Delany from Clermont.

"I prefer a quicker game and to play a bit more, but in France it's tough because it's a more negative game at times," the fly-half told BBC Sport.

"I'm not too sure how the Premiership is going to go. The way [Newcastle coach] Dave Walder wants to play the game, and from what I saw last year they definitely play an exciting brand of rugby that I'm looking forward to."

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We're back with the action tonight, but what shape does English rugby union's top flight find itself in? How will England's returning players fare? And which teams should we look out for during the next eight months or so?  

BBC Sport has you covered with a preview of the 2015-16 Premiership season.

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Many of the England players who were part of the World Cup campaign are involved this weekend, and new Northampton signing Kieran Brookes goes into the front row alongside Dylan Hartley.

Lee Dickson captains Saints for the first time while full-back Ben Foden returns from his anterior cruciate ligament injury.

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Premiership rugby is back at Sixways and Worcester have been forced into two late changes with Val Rapava Ruskin and Sam Lewis replaced by Na'ama Leleimalefaga and Marco Mama.

It means there are now seven debutants with Leleimalefaga and Mama joining Donncha O'Callaghan, Phil Dowson, Wynand Olivier, Tom Heathcote and Darren Barry who are also making their first starts.

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A disappointing ninth-placed finish in the Premiership last season by Gloucester was offset slightly by winning the European Challenge Cup - can they find the consistency this time around?

"We're all ready for competitive rugby- it's been a long pre-season," head coach David Humphreys told BBC Points West.

"We were delighted at the end of last year to win a competition - every competition we enter as a club we want to win.

"This club wants to be competing at a much higher level, this club wants to be competing in the top European competition."

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Jim Mallinder's side finished top of the pile last term but were beaten in the play-off semi-final by eventual winners Saracens - can Northampton go one better this time around?

"Saints learnt last season that finishing top of the table counts for little when it comes to the play-offs," says BBC Radio Northampton's Graham McKechnie.

"They are desperate to put that right and have strengthened with JJ Hanrahan from Munster, Jamie Gibson from Leicester and Kieran Brookes from Newcastle – they are rightly amongst the favourites for the title.  

"Expect Dylan Hartley to come storming back too after such a wretched end to his season."

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Wasps' new signings Jimmy Gopperth, Brendan Macken and George Smith are all included, while scrum-half Dan Robson is on the bench.

Dai Young's side remain without some of their main international players - lock Bradley Davies is still on World Cup duty with Wales, while England pair James Haskell and Joe Launchbury along with Italian prop Lorenzo Cittadini are also given the night off.

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Harlequins hand British and Irish Lion Adam Jones and ex-Australia captain James Horwill their debuts, while the returning England trio of Mike Brown, Nick Easter and Joe Marler are named among the replacements.

Captain Danny Care, who started for England against Uruguay last week, misses out following a back spasm, so Nick Evans leads the team.

One of the many joys of rugby union is of course the teams are announced the day before the match.

If you missed the announcements yesterday we'll be bringing you a reminder before the games kick-off tonight. Starting with...