Piers Francis pins Gloucester back with an accurate touch-finder but Gloucester work their line-out and maul well.

The home pack rumble five metres forwards before Northampton secure the turnover.

It's scrum time Saints and both teams need to find a way to assert themselves on this second half. Points, for either side, would be very welcome!

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A blow for Sale early on as Tom Curry has to be replaced after coming off second best in an accidental aerial collision with Harlequins full-back Mike Brown.

It's a worrying head injury for flanker Curry, which could also have implications for England.

The intensity is going through the roof right now as Northampton know that they still have plenty to do in order to get themselves back in the mix and Gloucester look to stick to their guns and keep playing.

Dan Biggar goes bravely up for a high ball and comes down with a clatter. He's a brave man and the commitment that he's showing his new side will be inspiring those around him.

With a delightful overlap on the right it's looking rosy for Northampton but Heinrich Brüssow just can't keep control of the ball as he races forwards at pace.

Before the scrum is set, the Saints make a permanent replacement in their front-row.

England captain Dylan Hartley will be out there for the remainder of this game now and that should please Eddie Jones who is watching from the stands.

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In promising position Northampton's line-out is stolen. The Cherry and Whites again look to clear with purpose but Henry Trinder decides to put boot to ball.

It rebounds off a Saints' defender and he's forced into a foot-race back to extricate themselves from danger. In the end, he makes it and Ben Vellacott clears off his boot.

Bright start to life at Sixways for Scotland fly-half Duncan Weir, who having banged one penalty goal over from just inside his own half in the first two minutes, has doubled the lead in the 10th minute with a second.

The home side are under the pump at the minute though...

Gloucester look to put some phases together in their own half and punch their way over the gain-line. It's not their most productive series in the match so Danny Cipriani puts boot to ball and tries to pin the Saints back.

Northampton look to break early straight off the back of a line-out. Cobus Reinach's break is a punchy one but he just can't get the offload away once Gloucester catch up with him.

The ambition from Reinach will have been noted by his opponents, they'll need to keep a close eye on the scrum-half.

Both sides are back out on the park at Kingsholm and set for another bruising 40 minutes.

The home side have made one change at the break, Ben Vellacott is on at scrum-half after a failed HIA for Callum Braley.

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Harelquins hit the front at The Stoop after AJ MacGinty is penalised inside his own 22 and Marcus Smith slots the penalty over.

Harlequins' visit of Sale to the Stoop has just got underway, and Wasps' trip to Worcester is also up and running.

Commentary is available above from our BBC local radio colleagues. Click the link you require to listen.

Meanwhile, we'll bring you the big moments from both those games - plus the second-half of Gloucester v Northampton and Exeter v Leicester - throughout the afternoon on BBC Sport.

Plenty of quality throughout this Wasps side, even in the absence of Willie le Roux and All-Black signing Lima Sopoaga.

Dependable full-back Rob Miller replaces Le Roux, while few three-quarter lines will have the creativity and class of Christian Wade, Elliot Daly and Juan De Jongh. Billy Searle partners Dan Robson in the halves.

Nathan Hughes locks a formidable pack which includes England teammate Joe Launchbury, and has the beef of Kieran Brookes to come off the bench.

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Replacements: Taylor, Zhvania, Brookes, Matthews, Johnson, Simpson, Lovobalavu, Watson.

GJ van Velze says that his side are looking to be more consistent this season and not end up in another relegation battle.

The quest for consistency starts today and their first six matches include meetings with Leicester, Exeter and Newcastle to name just a few.

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Two newbies get to make their Sixways bow in the shape of South Africa centre Francois Venter and Scotland fly-half Duncan Weir.

Worcester are without England centre Ben Te'o through injury but do have stalwart full-back Chris Pennell and Kiwi wing Bryce Heem as threats out the back.

Back-row forward GJ Van Velze, who overcome career-threatening head injuries to continue playing, will be guaranteed a warm welcome from the home support this afternoon as captain.

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Replacements: Taufete'e, Bower, Kerrod, Kitchener, du Preez, Arr, Lance, Beck.

New Harlequins head of rugby Paul Gustard names eight internationals in his first starting XV, including England quartet Mike Brown, Chris Robshaw, Danny Care and Joe Marler.

New signings Nathan Earle, Ben Tapuai and Ben Symons all start, while Paul Lasike is among the replacements.

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Replacements: Crumpton, Lambert, Swainston, Glynn, Chisholm, Mulchrone, Lang, Lasike.

Former Harlequins wing Marland Yarde faces his old club for the first time since leaving for the north west in 2017.

Sale are, of course, without the suspended Chris Ashton but they do include both the Curry and the James brothers in their starting line-up.

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Replacements: Neild, Taurus, Jones, Beaumont, Strauss, Warr, Jennings, Odogwu.

Wow. What a first-half at Kingsholm. That pass from 'D-Cip'. Sensational.

Take a well-deserved breather Emma, while we look at some team news for the rapidly approaching 15:00 BST kick-offs.

One final scrum of the half sees Northampton pinged for the early shove. The time went into the red as it was set-up and the home side duly boot the ball into Row Z.

Time for a few oranges and a couple of important half-time discussions. The discussions in the stands and on social media may very well centre around one man wearing red.

After an off-season that hit the headlines for the wrong reasons, Danny Cipriani is definitely letting his rugby do the talking. He's running the show for the hosts and you sense that there's plenty more to come.

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Three minutes until the break and Northampton have a scrum and a final platform of the half.

Tom Collins showcases his footwork before the visitors swing it to the left and the winger struggles to latch onto Luther Burrell's hasty, and untidy, offload out of contact.