URC Fixtures – Connacht, Leinster, Munster and Ulster starting teams

The teams for this weekend’s Round 14 fixtures of the BKT United Rugby Championship have been named with all details of match officials and broadcast information below.

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Just five points separate 5th – 11th place, with only five rounds remaining, the Race To The Eight continues this weekend. Every game counts.

TEAM NEWS HEADLINES

#ULSvCAR
A changed front row from last week’s EPCR Challenge Cup game in Clermont sees Eric O’Sullivan, Tom Stewart and Scott Wilson get the nod
Taulupe Faletau returns from injury to be named in Cardiff Rugby starting XV
#GLAvSHA
Oli Kebble to make 100th appearance for the club if he comes off the bench
Nick Hatton to make his Hollywoodbets Sharks debut
#LIOvLEI
Francke Horn makes his 50th appearance for the Emirates Lions
Charlie Ngatai returns as Diarmuid Mangan makes his first start for Leinster
#BENvDRA
Michele Lamaro captains Benetton
Dan Lydiate captains Dragons RFC as Sio Tomkinson makes his comeback from injury. While Aki Seiuli in line to make his 50th appearance if called upon from the bench
#BULvMUN
Elrigh Louw captains the Vodacom Bulls
Six changes to the Munster side that faced Northampton as Shane Daly, Alex Kendellen, Conor Murray, Calvin Nash, Jack O’Donoghue and RG Snyman come into the starting XV
#STOvOSP
Frans Malherbe will captain the DHL Stormers side
Morgan Morris set to captain Ospreys
#CONvZEB
Finlay Bealham will make his 200th appearance for Connacht
Geronimo Prisciantelli and Enrico Lucchin return from injury as they are named in the matchday squad
#EDIvSCA
Scotland duo Ali Price and Luke Crosbie both start for Edinburgh Rugby
Taine Plumtree returns from injury while Wales half-backs Sam Costelow and Gareth Davies back in Scarlets starting XV

FRIDAY, APRIL 19

Ulster v Cardiff Rugby
Kingspan Stadium, Belfast – KO 19.35 IRE & UK / 20.35 ITA & SA
Referee: Mike Adamson (SRU, 79th league game)
AR 1: Andrew Cole (IRFU) AR 2: Sam Holt (IRFU)
TMO: Andrew McMenemy (SRU)
Live on: BBC NI, Premier Sports, BBC Wales, TG4, SuperSport, Flo Rugby & URC.tv

Ulster: Will Addison, Mike Lowry, James Hume, Jude Postlethwaite, Jacob Stockdale, Jake Flannery, Nathan Doak, Eric O’Sullivan, Tom Stewart, Scott Wilson, Harry Sheridan, Alan O’Connor (CAPT), Dave Ewers, Marcus Rea, Dave McCann
Replacements: John Andrew, Andrew Warwick, Tom O’Toole, Cormac Izuchukwu, Greg Jones, John Cooney, Billy Burns, Ethan McIlroy

Cardiff Rugby: Cam Winnett, Josh Adams, Mason Grady, Ben Thomas, Theo Cabango, Tinus de Beer, Ellis Bevan, Corey Domachowski, Liam Belcher (CAPT), Keiron Assiratti, Ben Donnell, Teddy Williams, Alex Mann, Thomas Young, Taulupe Faletau
Replacements: Rhys Carré, Evan Lloyd, Ciaran Parker, Rory Thornton, Ellis Jenkins, Gonzalo Bertranou, Jacob Beetham

Ulster Forwards Coach Roddy Grant said: “The table is really tight at this stage of the league, and you can never predict results. We know our game against Cardiff in front of our supporters at Kingspan Stadium is a very important game, and we’re ready for the challenge that it’s set to bring.”

Cardiff Rugby Head Coach Matt Sherratt said: “We come to Belfast on the back of two very good away performances against Glasgow and Munster, but now is the time to turn one point into four. Ulster is a difficult place to come, and have a strong pack, but we’ve had some time off to recover and recuperate and then trained and prepared really well for the game. There is no reason why with this group, and the performances we have already put in on the road this season we can’t put in another good account of ourselves and turn a good performance into a win.”

Glasgow Warriors v Hollywoodbets Sharks
Scotstoun Stadium, Glasgow – KO 19.35 IRE & UK / 20.35 ITA & SA
Referee: Federico Vedovellli (FIR, 7th league game)
AR 1: Sam Grove-White (SRU) AR 2: Rob McDowell (SRU)
TMO: Matteo Liperini (FIR)
Live on: Premier Sports, SuperSport, Viaplay, Flo Rugby & URC.tv

Glasgow Warriors: Kyle Rowe, Kyle Steyn (CAPT), Sione Tuipulotu, Stafford McDowall, Facundo Cordero, Tom Jordan, George Horne, Nathan McBeth, Johnny Matthews, Zander Fagerson, Max Williamson, Scott Cummings, Matt Fagerson, Henco Venter, Jack Dempsey
Replacements: Gregor Hiddleston, Oli Kebble, Lucio Sordoni, Sintu Manjezi, Ally Miller, Thomas Gordon, Jamie Dobie, Ross Thompson

Hollywoodbets Sharks: Boeta Chamberlain, Eduan Keyter, Murray Koster, Francois Venter (CAPT), Aphiwe Dyantyi, Curwin Bosch, Grant Williams, Ntuthuko Mchunu, Dan Jooste, Hanro Jacobs, Corne Rahl, Gerbrandt Grobler, Tino Mavesere, Lappies Labuschagne, Nick Hatton
Replacements: Fez Mbatha, Khwezi Mona, Vincent Koch, Emile van Heerden, Vincent Tshituka, Cameron Wright, Siya Masuku, Ethan Hooker

Glasgow Warriors Head Coach Franco Smith said: “The Sharks will pose a significant test tomorrow night, and we know that we will have to perform well to get the right result. They have a squad filled with powerful forwards and dangerous backs, and they have the potential to cause problems from anywhere on the field. We have worked hard all week in preparation for this match, as we also look to celebrate the work of the inspirational team at Glasgow Children’s Hospital Charity at Scotstoun tomorrow night.”

SATURDAY, APRIL 20

Emirates Lions v Leinster
Emirates Airline Park, Johannesburg – KO 14.00 IRE & UK / 15.00 ITA & SA
Referee: Gianluca Gnecchi (FIR, 30th league game)
AR 1: Morne Ferreira (SARU) AR 2: Christopher Allison (SARU)
TMO: Andrea Piardi (FIR)
Live on: SuperSport, RTÉ, Premier Sports, Flo Rugby & URC.tv

Emirates Lions: Quan Horn, Richard Kriel, Erich Cronje, Marius Louw (CAPT), Edwill van der Merwe, Sanele Nohamba, Morne van den Berg, Morgan Naude, PJ Botha, Ruan Dreyer, Willem Alberts, Ruan Delport, JC Pretorius, Emmanuel Tshituka, Francke Horn
Replacements: Jaco Visagie, JP Smith, Asenathi Ntlabakanye, Reinhard Nothnagel, Sibusiso Sangweni, Nico Steyn, Jordan Hendrikse, Henco van Wyk

Leinster: Ciarán Frawley, Rob Russell, Liam Turner, Charlie Ngatai, Andrew Osborne, Harry Byrne, Luke McGrath, Cian Healy, Lee Barron, Thomas Clarkson, Brian Deeny, Jason Jenkins, Diarmuid Mangan, Scott Penny (CAPT), Max Deegan
Replacements: John McKee, Michael Milne, Michael Ala’alatoa, Ross Molony, Rhys Ruddock, Cormac Foley, San Prendergast, Ben Brownlee
Benetton v Dragons RFC
Stadio Monigo, Treviso – KO 14.00 IRE & UK / 15.00 ITA & SA
Referee: Frank Murphy (IRFU, 83rd league game)
AR 1: Fillipo Russo (FIR) AR 2: Alex Frasson (FIR)
TMO: Mark Patton (IRFU)
Live on: Sky Italia, S4C, SuperSport, Premier Sports, Flo Rugby & URC.tv

Benetton: Rhyno Smith, Leonardo Marin, Ignacio Brex, Marco Zanon, Onisi Ratave, Tomas Albornoz, Andy Uren, Mirco Spagnolo, Gianmarco Lucchesi, Giosuè Zilocchi, Scott Scrafton, Riccardo Favretto, Sebastian Negri, Michele Lamaro (CAPT), Toa Halafihi
Replacements: Bautista Bernasconi, Ivan Nemer, Tiziano Pasquali, Gideon Koegelenberg, Edoardo Iachizzi, Alessandro Izekor, Dewaldt Duvenage, Jacob Umaga

Dragons RFC: Cai Evans, Rio Dyer, Sio Tomkinson, Aneurin Owen, Jared Rosser, Will Reed, Dane Blacker, Rodrigo Martinez, James Benjamin, Luke Yendle, Ben Carter, George Nott, Dan Lydiate (CAPT), Sean Lonsdale, Taine Basham
Replacements: Brodie Coghlan, Aki Seiuli, Dmitri Arhip, Harrison Keddie, Aaron Wainwright, Che Hope, Joe Westwood, Jordan Williams

Benetton Head Coach Marco Bortolami said: “We have made some changes that allow us to have energy and drive from the first minute. The Dragons are a very high-performance team with forwards and this is why I chose to bring six forwards and two midfielders on the bench; to keep the pace and intensity of the fight as high as possible over the course of 80 minutes. Some players who had played less in the last period will return to the pitch and I’m sure they will be ready. The choice to put Marin on the wing is due to the fact that we consider him to be the player with the most suitable characteristics to cover a role in which we have many injured players. It’s not his primary position, but he’s trained very well and I’m sure he’ll have a great match.”

Dragons RFC Head Coach Dai Flanagan said: “Benetton do everything well. They kick well, they chase well, their collisions are very good. They have evolved their game superbly well. If you compare our preview from last year to this year, last year it was about not giving them much set piece because they drive a lot. This year they drive, break out, and their number 12 (Juan Ignacio) Brex is a fantastic rugby player. They get him on ball a lot and he can play front line, out the back, make breaks, he is a massive dangerman. The 13 (Tommaso) Menocello is some player too.”
Vodacom Bulls v Munster
Loftus Versfeld Stadium, Pretoria – KO 16.05 IRE & UK / 17.05 ITA & SA
Referee: Adam Jones (WRU, 35th league game)
AR 1: AJ Jacobs (IRFU) AR 2: Dylen November (IRFU)
TMO: Craig Evans (WRU)
Live on: SuperSport, RTÉ, Premier Sports, Flo Rugby & URC.tv

Vodacom Bulls: Willie Le Roux, Kurt-Lee Arendse, Canan Moodie, David Kriel, Sebastien de Klerk, Johan Goosen, Embrose Papier, Gerhard Steenekamp, Johan Grobbelaar, Wilco Louw, Ruan Vermaak, JF van Heerden, Cameron Hanekom, Reinhardt Ludwig, Elrigh Louw (CAPT)
Replacements: Akker van der Merwe, Simphiwe Matanzima, Mornay Smith, Janko Swanepoel, Mpilo Gumede, Zak Burger, Chris Smith, Devon Williams

Munster: Simon Zebo, Calvin Nash, Antoine Frisch, Alex Nankivell, Shane Daly, Jack Crowley, Conor Murray, Jeremy Loughman, Niall Scannell, Stephen Archer, RG Snyman, Tadhg Beirne (CAPT), Peter O’Mahony, Alex Kendellen, Jack O’Donoghue
Replacements: Eoghan Clarke, Josh Wycherley, Oli Jager, Tom Ahern, Gavin Coombes, Craig Casey, Joey Carbery, John Hodnett
DHL Stormers v Ospreys
DHL Stadium, Cape Town – KO 18.15 IRE & UK / 19.15 ITA & SA
Referee: Andrew Brace (IRFU, 94th league game)
AR 1: Cwengile Jadzweni (SARU) AR 2: Hanru van Rooyen (SARU)
TMO: Chris Busby (IRFU)
Live on: SuperSport, S4C, Premier Sports, Flo Rugby & URC.tv

DHL Stormers: Warrick Gelant, Suleiman Hartzenberg, Wandisile Simelane, Dan du Plessis, Ben Loader, Manie Libbok, Stefan Ungerer, Brok Harris, JJ Kotze, Frans Malherbe (CAPT), Adre Smith, Gary Porter, Nama Xaba, Hacjivah Dayimani, Evan Roos
Replacements: Scarra Ntubeni, Kwenzo Blose, Sazi Sandi, Ruben van Heerden, Willie Engelbrecht, Marcel Theunissen, Paul de Wet, Damian Willemse

Ospreys: Max Nagy, Luke Morgan, Keiran Williams, Owen Watkin, Keelan Giles, Dan Edwards, Reuben Morgan-Williams, Nicky Smith, Sam Parry, Rhys Henry, Victor Sekekete, Huw Sutton, James Ratti, Harri Deaves, Morgan Morris (CAPT)
Replacements: Lewis Lloyd, Garyn Phillips, Ben Warren, Adam Beard, Jeandre Rudolph, Luke Davies, Jack Walsh, Evardi Boshoff

DHL Stormers Director of Rugby John Dobson said: “We are getting closer to the play-offs, which means that every match becomes our most important and we will certainly be treating this game that way. We will have a few exciting combinations out there and they will need to fire from the first whistle if we are to get the result we need against a highly competitive Ospreys side. It promises to be another great night at DHL Stadium and we can’t wait to see our fans out there again,”

Ospreys Head Coach Toby Booth said: “The Stormers are very physical so it’s a big challenge for us. They are a big team with a strong set piece, but they’ve got some good athletes behind and will play an open game. It’s important that we go out and give the best account of ourselves in this one.”
Connacht v Zebre Parma
Dexcom Stadium, Galway – KO 19.35 IRE & UK / 20.35 ITA & SA
Referee: Aimee Barrett- Theron (SARU, 7th league game)
AR 1: Peter Martin (IRFU) AR 2: Tomas O’Sullivan (IRFU)
TMO: Colin Brett (SRU)
Live on: TG4, SuperSport, Premier Sports, Flo Rugby & URC.tv

Connacht: Shane Jennings, John Porch, Tom Farrell, Bundee Aki, Andrew Smith, JJ Hanrahan, Matthew Devine, Jordan Duggan, Dave Heffernan, Finlay Bealham, Joe Joyce, Niall Murray, Shamus Hurley-Langton, Conor Oliver, Seán O’Brien
Replacements: Tadgh McElroy, Peter Dooley, Sam Illo, Oisín Dowling, Jarrad Butler, Caolin Blade, Cathal Forde, Paul Boyle

Zebre Parma: Lorenzo Pani, Jacopo Trulla, Scott Gregory, Fetuli Paea, Simone Gesi, Geronimo Prisciantelli, Gonzalo Garcia, Muhamed Hasa, Giampietro Ribaldi, Juan Pitinari, Leonard Krumov, Andrea Zambonin, Guido Volpi, Davide Ruggeri, Giovanni Licata (CAPT)
Replacements: Tommaso Di Bartolomeo, Danilo Fischetti, Riccardo Genovese, Matteo Canali, Iacopo Bianchi, Thomas Dominguez, Franco Smith Jr, Enrico Lucchin

Connacht Head Coach Pete Wilkins said: “Tomorrow marks the first of five crucial games for us to ensure we break back into the top 8 and remain in control of our destiny this season. We’re very clear in what we need from the coming weeks to make the playoffs and we’re confident that we can achieve it. It’s a special day for the club, with Finlay earning his 200th cap for Connacht, and Matthew making his first start. Although at different stages of their careers, both are respected and valuable members of the squad, and we are determined to mark their milestones with a strong team performance.”

Zebre Parma Head Coach Fabio Roselli said: “Connacht is a team that wants to play all-out rugby at home and is capable of great acceleration with world-class players. We absolutely have to react to the last bad performance; we have an important mission for the end of the season and this mission starts from Connacht. We have to find the courage to challenge them on counter-attacks and turnovers and regain that confidence to play our rugby, with our identity that makes us competitive against everyone and that excites us so much!”
Edinburgh Rugby v Scarlets
Hive Stadium, Edinburgh – KO 19.35 IRE & UK / 20.35 ITA & SA
Referee: Eoghan Cross (IRFU, 16th league game)
AR 1: Ru Campbell (SRU) AR 2: Michael Todd (SRU)
TMO: Olly Hodges (IRFU)
Live on: Premier Sports, SuperSport, Flo Rugby & URC.tv

Edinburgh Rugby: Wes Goosen, Matt Currie, Mark Bennett, James Lang, Duhan van der Merwe, Ben Healy, Ali Price, Boan Venter, Dave Cherry, Javan Sebastian, Jamie Hodgson, Grant Gilchrist (CAPT), Jamie Ritchie, Luke Crosbie, Viliame Mata
Replacements: Ewan Ashman, Pierre Schoeman, WP Nel, Marshall Sykes, Connor Boyle, Ben Vellacott, Cammy Scott, Chris Dean

Scarlets: Ioan Nicholas, Tom Rogers, Johnny Williams, Eddie James, Tomi Lewis, Sam Costelow, Gareth Davies, Kemsley Mathias, Ryan Elias (CAPT), Sam Wainwright, Alex Craig, Sam Lousi, Taine Plumtree, Dan Davis, Vaea Fifita
Replacements: Shaun Evans, Wyn Jones, Harri O’Connor, Morgan Jones, Carwyn Tuipulotu, Archie Hughes, Dan Jones, Ryan Conbeer

Edinburgh Rugby Head Coach Sean Everitt said: “It’s brilliant to be back home at Hive Stadium with so much travel to South Africa in recent weeks. The boys can’t wait to run out in front of our supporters and there has definitely been a buzz and energy about the squad this week. We’ve made a number of changes to freshen things up. Luke [Crosbie] and Jamie [Hodgson] have both impressed from the bench in recent weeks and deserve their starts, while it also gives us the chance to rest a few guys who’ve carried the load for us in recent games. We know Scarlets are a dangerous team having faced them in Europe earlier this season. They come in to tomorrow night’s match with nothing to lose, so we’ve got to be ready from the get-go. There is no easy game in the BKT URC and this team will be ready for a proper 80-minute battle tomorrow night.”

Scarlets Head Coach Dwayne Peel said: “Obviously, we were disappointed with our performance against Glasgow after coming into that game on the back of a tough, well-fought win over Benetton. There is an opportunity now to go to Edinburgh and put that right. We have had a bit of a break, a bit of reflection and we’re looking forward to the rest of the season. There are five games left and opportunities for guys to put their hands up and also an opportunity to find some momentum and show some fight.”

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