Gloucester 'winners' face final debutants Bristol

Premiership Women's Rugby final: Gloucester-Hartpury v Bristol Bears

Venue: Sandy Park, Exeter Date: Saturday, 22 June Kick-off: 15:00 BST

Coverage: Watch on the BBC Sport website and BBC iPlayer; live radio commentary on BBC Radio Gloucestershire & BBC Radio Bristol; live text updates on the BBC Sport website.

Gloucester-Hartpury and Bristol Bears will renew their fierce West Country rivalry in the biggest game of the season on Saturday as the two sides meet in the Premiership Women's final.

Gloucester have been almost perfect in the defence of their title and finished top of the table after the regular season.

The reigning champions lost just one of their 16 league matches to former winners Saracens, and cruised through their semi-final with Exeter Chiefs.

Gloucester head coach Sean Lynn is confident of further success and says his side are full of "winners".

"It’s a great challenge, a cup final and everyone wants to be in those big games," said Lynn.

"As a group we’ve taken huge confidence from our performance against Exeter, so it’s worth getting excited for."

Bristol, meanwhile, will make their debut in the showpiece game of English women's rugby after an impressive run of six wins in their last seven matches, including a stunning performance to shock Sarries in their semi-final.

Gloucester will be favourites to join Saracens as only the second club to win back-to-back titles, while Bristol will draw strength from making history as the first side to win an away semi-final.

However, Bears head coach Dave Ward knows his side will have to be at their best.

"It's going to be about us being the best team," said Ward.

"If you go player for player, Abbie Ward versus Zoe Aldcroft et cetera, it's a 50/50 toss up the whole way.

"The individuals will not win the game, the best team will win the game.

"We did that brilliantly against Saracens and we need to do that again against Gloucester."

Gloucester name the same starting XV to the one which thumped Exeter in their last game.

Versatile forward Steph Else comes in for back-row Carmen Castellucci among the replacements in the only change to the matchday squad.

Bristol have been handed a huge boost up front as they welcome back experienced Test prop Sarah Bern, who has been out since January and missed this year's Six Nations with a knee injury.

Bern is one of three changes from the win over Saracens, and she will play in an all-England front-row with prop Hannah Botterman and hooker Lark Atkin-Davies.

Elsewhere, Courtney Keight replaces the injured Deborah Wills on the wing and Scotland's Meryl Smith is named at full-back as Ella Lovibond moves onto the bench.

Gloucester-Hartpury: Sing; Venner, Jones, Heard, Hendy; George, Hunt (co-capt); Carson, Jones, Muir, Beckett, Monaghan, Brock, Lewis, Aldcroft (co-capt).

Replacements: Dale, Perry, Tuipulotu, Williams, Else, Blackburn, Hyett, Lund.

Bristol Bears: Smith; Bonner, Murray, Aitchison, Keight; Reed (co-capt), Bevan; Botterman, Atkin-Davies, Bern, Burns, Ward (co-capt), Joyce-Butchers, Gallagher, Marston-Mulhearn.

Replacements: Sprague, Pam, Clarke, Cunningham, Nigrelli, Burgess, Lovibond, Hesketh.

Referee: Sara Cox

Game control - Hunt v Bevan

It's an Anglo-Welsh contest at scrum-half.

Gloucester co-captain Natasha 'Mo' Hunt has returned to the England fold under new head coach John Mitchell and has impressed with her tenacity and energy.

Hunt likes to move the ball quickly and expose frailties around the fringes, while Bevan offers much of the same as well as her potent boot.

The Bristol scrum-half has kicked valuable points for Wales in the past and will want to direct her side at Sandy Park.

Scrum time - Botterman v Muir

England teammates turned fierce opponents.

Bristol loosehead Botterman and Gloucester tighthead Maud Muir were the Red Roses' first choice pairing during the Six Nations.

Both props carry hard and tirelessly in the loose but who will come out on top in the scrum?

Line-out queens - Ward v Aldcroft

Bristol lock Abbie Ward and Gloucester number eight Zoe Aldcroft are not directly lining up against each other, but their key contest will come in the line-out.

Both women take their lineouts very seriously and are renowned for their knowledge and expertise in this area.

They take centre stage for England at the line-out, which will be considered of vital importance in the final and could determine who takes the trophy home.