Fenerbahce v Galatasaray, Rangers v Celtic, India v Pakistan, the Boston Red Sox v the New York Yankees. All fierce sporting rivalries that transcend their sports into wider culture.

You would think that rugby’s big rivalries hardly hold a candle to these megalithic encounters but for those who play in them and watch from the stands, derby day means an awful lot.

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Just ask former England winger Chris Ashton. Having played for six English Premiership clubs during his career, he encountered some of the biggest grudge matches in the country and knows there is real needle between sides.

One derby in particular, however, stands out for Ashton and it is one where he played on both sides of the divide.

“Without doubt, it is Northampton Saints v Leicester Tigers. I think it is the closest I ever saw to Wigan vs St Helens in rugby league,” Ashton told Rugby World.

“It’s funny because there is a split at the A14 motorway. Whichever side of that A-road you are born on is your team and who you will support for the rest of your life. Leicester was the team to beat for a long time but Northampton have arguably taken over in recent years.”

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Personal experiences

Tigers wing Alesana Tuilagi is brushed aside by Saints wing Chris Ashton during the Aviva Premiership Semi Final between Leicester Tigers and Northampton Saints. (Photo by Stu Forster/Getty Images)

Ashton played at Saints from 2007 to 2012 and Tigers between 2022 and 2023, winning a Premiership title at the latter. He played in the East Midlands derby for both teams during his career and remembers it being a terse affair.

Most notably for Ashton was in 2011 when he was infamously punched on multiple occasions by Tigers centre Manu Tuilagi in a heated ruckus. However, it is memories of Manu’s brother Alesana that he remembers most.

“I loved walking out at Leicester Tigers, Welford Road in a Northampton Saints shirt for the derby. The fans were right on top of you, telling me what they thought of me while I had Alesana Tuilagi running at me all game. It was fierce and I loved every minute of it!”

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Ashton is not the only one who thinks the East Midlands derby is the biggest in English rugby. TNT Sports colleague David Flatman also agrees.

“The biggest derby in English rugby is Leicester Tigers v Northampton Saints,” Flatman told Rugby World.

“With a lot of the derbies, the fans from the two sides are quite different. Bath fans aren’t like Gloucester fans. Actually, Bath fans are more like Quins fans. But Leicester and Northampton fans are similar. Same accents, live in the same towns. It makes it a little more intimate and immediate.

“What typified that derby for me was the Northampton Saints front row of Soane Tonga’uiha, Dylan Hartley and Brian Mujati at their peak going up against the best ever loosehead to play in the Prem in Marcos Ayerza, George Chuter and Martin Castrogiovanni and it was a proper set-up.”

Leicester Tigers and Northampton Saints meet this weekend as part of Premiership rugby’s derby weekend which will be broadcast exclusively live on TNT Sports and discovery+ this weekend.

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