Gilmore credits improved preparation as Harlequins open season with perfect 10 points

Harlequins sit top of Group B in the PREM Rugby Cup after collecting all ten available points from their opening two fixtures, with head coach Jason Gilmore attributing the strong start to a more disciplined training environment built during a full pre-season.

The London club opened their campaign with a commanding 45-21 defeat of Leicester before returning to the Stoop the following week to complete a 29-14 comeback win against Northampton, securing a second consecutive bonus-point haul.

“I think the way the boys have attacked the weeks, we are getting our Monday to Friday right,” Gilmore told former Harlequins player Ugo Monye. “The professionalism and the standards that the boys are setting this year compared to last year put us in good stead. If we can get that Monday to Friday right, the weekend takes care of itself.”

Gilmore’s appointment as permanent head coach came after a turbulent summer. Danny Wilson departed abruptly to join the Wales coaching staff on the eve of the 2025/26 season, leaving Gilmore — previously the club’s defence coach — to step in at short notice. Despite Harlequins finishing ninth in the Gallagher Premiership, the club backed Gilmore with the full-time role and restructured their rugby department around him, bringing in former Wallabies head coach Robbie Deans as performance director.

Having had a complete pre-season to implement his own ideas and with Deans’ experience to draw on, Gilmore believes the squad is considerably better equipped than it was 12 months ago. The real measure of that progress will come on 25 September when Harlequins host Bath in the Gallagher Premiership.

Elsewhere in the PREM Rugby Cup this weekend, Gloucester bounced back from a narrow opening-round defeat to Bristol with a seven-try, 43-26 victory over Sale Sharks to move top of Group A by a point. Exeter thrashed Bristol 45-21 — Olly Woodburn scoring a first-half hat-trick — while Newcastle Red Bulls launched their Cup campaign with a 36-24 win at Leicester.