Gloucester v Northampton Saints: Team news for Saturday's game at Kingsholm

Harrison is nursing a hand injury, opening the door for Shaun Adendorff to start at No.8.

But Saints do have Dan Biggar available after he trained with Wales during the early part of the week, and the fly-half starts against the Cherry and Whites.

Courtney Lawes is absent as he is with England ahead of the start of the Six Nations, meaning Api Ratuniyarawa gets the nod alongside David Ribbans in the second row.

Piers Francis pairs up with Rory Hutchinson in the centres, with Matt Proctor and Taqele Naiyaravoro on the wings.

Youngster Tommy Freeman is among a largely youthful set of replacements.

Danny Hobbs-Awoyemi (Achilles), Josh Gillespie (hamstring), Emmanuel Iyogun (ankle) and Kayde Sylvester (Achilles) are on the injury list.

For Gloucester, Willi Heinz makes his first appearances of the season, with the scrum-half having recovered from injury.

Santiago Carreras starts for the Cherry and Whites for the first time, lining up on the wing, while Ollie Thorley and Jason Woodward complete the back three.

Billy Twelvetrees and Mark Atkinson link up in the midfield, with Lloyd Evans keeping the fly-half shirt.

In the forwards, head coach George Skivington has selected the tried and tested back-row of Jordy Reid, Ruan Ackermann and Lewis Ludlow, who resumes the captaincy.

Val Rapava-Ruskin, Henry Walker and Fraser Balmain make up the front row with Matt Garvey and Matias Alemanno behind them in the second row.

Two former Saints players will be on the bench for Gloucester, with Jamal Ford-Robinson and Jamie Gibson ready to face their former club.

Gloucester: Woodward; Carreras, Twelvetrees, Atkinson, Thorley; Evans, Heinz; Rapava-Ruskin, Walker, Balmain; Garvey, Alemanno; Reid, Ludlow (c), Ackermann.

Replacements: Gleave, Ford-Robinson, Knight, Craig, Gibson, Chapman, Seabrook, Moyle.

Saints: Furbank; Proctor, Hutchinson, Francis, Naiyaravoro; Biggar, Mitchell; Waller (cc), Matavesi, Hill; Ribbans, Ratuniyarawa; Isiekwe, Ludlam (cc), Adendorff.

Replacements: Haywood, van Wyk, Painter, Coles, Moon, James, Dingwall, Freeman.