Five massive rugby matches that are live on TV this weekend during Six Nations break

England, Scotland, Wales, Ireland, France and Italy rest up this week as focus returns to club rugby for time being.
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There will be no action coming from Rugby’s Greatest Championship this weekend as the six national sides take a well earned break from the gruelling tournament.

With the Six Nations on hiatus, many of the fringe players from the national sides will return to their clubs to get some game time back in their legs and there are plenty of eye-catching fixtures being broadcast on TV for fans to get their rugby fix from. There’s action across the UK and beyond with both the Gallagher Premiership and United Rugby Championship on the screens.

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Friday night starts off with what is sure to be a fascinating contest between Ulster and Glasgow Warriors from the Kingspan Stadium in Belfast. While Irish rivals Leinster may be opening up a gap at the top of the table, Ulster find themselves third and just four points clear of their visitors who sit fifth. They are also coming off the back of a stunning 35-5 win over second place DHL Stormers in their last fixture.

Meanwhile, Glasgow have won their last five URC matches including victoires over Stormers and away to Scottish rivals Edinburgh. It’s sure to be a close game between two sides who usually rack up a decent points tally so there could be plenty of try scoring action. The match is live on Viaplay Sports 1 and kicks off at 7:35pm. There’s also a choice of matches with Munster v Ospreys on Viaplay 2, also in the URC, and a Gallagher Premiership fixture between Gloucester and Harlequins on BT Sport 1.

The other big offering from the URC comes on Saturday from Johannesburg where the Lions take on the Sharks as the two South African sides go head-to-head. Both sides have been struggling this campaign with the hosts sitting 13th in the table and the visitors only slightly better off in eighth. However, it is still likely to be a fiercely contested match with plenty of Springbok talent on show including the likes of Siya Kolisi, Ox Nche, Lukhanyo Am and more. The match will be shown on Viaplay 1 with a 1pm kick off.

English rugby fans can look forward to a blockbuster match up of their own on Saturday as Northampton host Sale Sharks at Franklin’s Gardens. The visitors sit second in the league table but are some way ahead of their hosts in fourth with a 15 point difference. However, a win for Northampton could go some way to closing that gap and Sharks are on a run of two straight defeats - losing to Exeter Chiefs and Bristol Bears this month. The match is on BT Sport 2 with a 3pm kick off and other live matches on Saturday include Bulls v Stormers on Viaplay 1, Scarlets v Edinburgh on Viaplay 1 and more.

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There’s one final rugby offering on Saturday that also catches the eye and that comes from the Women’s Allianz Premier 15s where Saracens face Harlequins. There’s nothing to separate the two sides going into the match with both having won seven and lost three and sitting third and fourth in the table on 35 points. That match will be available on the BBC Iplayer and BBC Sport website and kicks off at 2pm.

Finally, there is one more massive offering from the Gallagher Premiership to close out the weekend as Sunday sees league leaders Saracens travelling to Leicester Tigers. The two giants of English rugby have had differing fortunes this season with the visitors only losing one league match and sitting eight points clear at the top of the table. Tigers, meanwhile, are eighth with just five wins from 13 matches and a whopping 26 points behind Saracens but there are never easy games at Welford Road and it could be a real barn burner if it gets going. The action will be on BT Sport 1 with a 3pm kick off while the other big match on Sunday is Leinster vs Dragons on Viaplay 1.

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