The United Rugby Championship (URC) season gets back underway on Friday with two games before there’s another six on Saturday.
Here’s the team news, match officials and how to watch the action.
Friday
Ulster v Benetton
Prediction: Ulster by 6
Ulster: 15 Jacob Stockdale, 14 Rob Baloucoune, 13 James Hume, 12 Jude Postlethwaite, 11 Werner Kok, 10 Jack Murphy, 9 Nathan Doak, 8 Juarno Augustus, 7 Nick Timoney, 6 David McCann, 5 Iain Henderson, 4 Harry Sheridan, 3 Scott Wilson, 2 Tom Stewart, 1 Sam Crean
Replacements: 16 Rob Herring, 17 Callum Reid, 18 Tom O’Toole, 19 Matthew Dalton, 20 Bryn Ward, 21 David Shanahan, 22 Jake Flannery, 23 Stewart Moore
Benetton: 15 Rhyno Smith, 14 Onisi Ratave, 13 Paolo Odogwu, 12 Filippo Drago, 11 Ignacio Mendy, 10 Jacob Umaga, 9 Andy Uren, 8 So’otala Fa’aso’o, 7 Michele Lamaro (c), 6 Jadin Kingi, 5 Eli Snyman, 4 Federico Ruzza, 3 Giosué Zilocchi, 2 Bautista Bernasconi, 1 Destiny Aminu
Replacements: 16 Nicholas Gasperini, 17 Nahuel Tetaz Chaparro, 18 Marcos Gallorini, 19 Giulio Marini, 20 Alessandro Izekor, 21 John Bryant, 22 Louis Werchon, 23 Leonardo Marin
Venue: Affidea Stadium, Belfast
Kick-off: 19.45 IRE & UK / 20.45 ITA / 21.45 SA
Referee: Sam Grove-White (SRU, 56th league game)
Assistant Referees: Robbie Jenkinson (IRFU), Max Weston (IRFU)
TMO: David Sutherland (SRU)
Live on: Premier Sports, SuperSport, Flo Rugby & URC.tv
Dragons v Leinster
Prediction: Leinster by 18
Dragons: 15 Angus O’Brien (c), 14 Cai Evans, 13 David Richards, 12 Aneurin Owen, 11 Huw Anderson, 10 Tinus de Beer, 9 Rhodri Williams, 8 Mackenzie Martin, 7 Thomas Young, 6 Ryan Woodman, 5 Matthew Screech, 4 Seb Davies, 3 Robert Hunt, 2 Oli Burrows, 1 Dylan Kelleher-Griffiths
Replacements: 16 Will Austin, 17 Wyn Jones, 18 Owain James, 19 Levi Douglas, 20 Shane Lewis-Hughes, 21 Niall Armstrong, 22 Joe Westwood, 23 Ewan Rosser
Leinster: 15 Jimmy O’Brien, 14 Joshua Kenny, 13 Hugh Cooney, 12 Ciarán Frawley, 11 Jordan Larmour, 10 Harry Byrne, 9 Fintan Gunne, 8 Max Deegan (c), 7 Scott Penny, 6 Alex Soroka, 5 Diarmuid Mangan, 4 Brian Deeny, 3 Thomas Clarkson, 2 Gus McCarthy, 1 Jack Boyle
Replacements: 16 John McKee, 17 Jerry Cahir, 18 Rabah Slimani, 19 RG Snyman, 20 Josh Ericson, 21 Luke McGrath, 22 Charlie Tector, 23 Ruben Moloney
Venue: Rodney Parade, Newport
Kick-off: 19.45 IRE & UK / 20.45 ITA / 21.45 SA
Referee: Morne Ferreira (SARU, 19th league game)
Assistant Referees: Craig Evans (WRU), Lucas Yendle (WRU)
TMO: Chris Allison (SARU)
Live on: Premier Sports, TG4, SuperSport, Flo Rugby & URC.tv
Saturday
Bulls v Lions
Prediction: Bulls by 14
Bulls: 15 Willie le Roux, 14 Sebastian de Klerk, 13 David Kriel, 12 Jan Serfontein, 11 Stravino Jacobs, 10 Keagan Johannes, 9 Embrose Papier, 8 JJ Theron, 7 Reinhardt Ludwig (c), 6 Jeandre Rudolph, 5 JF van Heerden, 4 Jaco Grobbelaar, 3 Francois Klopper, 2 Akker van der Merwe, 1 Alu Tshakweni
Replacements: 16 Jean Else, 17 Sti Sithole, 18 Mornay Smith, 19 Cobus Wiese, 20 Elrigh Louw, 21 Paul de Wet, 22 Stedman Gans, 23 Cheswill Jooste
Lions: 15 Quan Horn, 14 Kelly Mpeku, 13 Henco van Wyk, 12 Bronson Mills, 11 Eduan Keyter, 10 Chris Smith, 9 Nico Steyn, 8 Francke Horn (c), 7 Ruan Venter, 6 Jarod Cairns, 5 Reinhard Nothnagel, 4 Etienne Oosthuizen, 3 RF Schoeman, 2 Franco Marais, 1 SJ Kotze
Replacements: 16 Morne Brandon, 17 Edward Davids, 18 Conraad van Vuuren, 19 Darrien Landsberg, 20 Renzo du Plessis, 21 Sibabalo Qoma, 22 Haashim Pead, 23 Gianni Lombard
Venue: Loftus Versfeld Stadium, Pretoria
Kick-off: 12.00 IRE & UK / 13.00 ITA / 14.00 SA
Referee: Aimee Barrett-Theron (SARU, 12th league game)
Assistant Referees: Griffin Colby (SARU), Sean Muller (SARU)
TMO: Quinton Immelman (SARU)
Live on: SuperSport, Premier Sports, TG4, Flo Rugby & URC.tv
Zebre Parma v Cardiff
Prediction: Zebre Parma by 3
Zebre Parma: 15 Lorenzo Pani, 14 Mirko Belloni, 13 Guilio Bertaccini, 12 Marco Zanon, 11 Simone Gesi, 10 Martin Roger Farias, 9 Alessandro Fusco, 8 Giovanni Licata (c), 7 Samuele Locatelli, 6 Davide Ruggeri, 5 Leonard Krumov, 4 Alessandro Ortombina, 3 Matteo Nocera, 2 Tommaso Di Bartolomeo, 1 Muhamed Hasa
Replacements: 16 Giampietro Ribaldi, 17 Paolo Buonfiglio, 18 Juan Pitinari, 19 Giacomo Ferrari, 20 David Odiase, 21 Migael Prinsloo, 22 Giacomo Da Re, 23 Damiano Mazza
Cardiff: 15 Cam Winnett, 14 Mason Grady, 13 Harri Millard, 12 Steff Emanuel, 11 Tom Bowen, 10 Ioan Lloyd, 9 Aled Davies, 8 Alun Lawrence, 7 Dan Thomas, 6 Ben Donnell, 5 George Nott, 4 Josh McNally (c), 3 Javan Sebastian, 2 Daf Hughes, 1 Rhys Barratt
Replacements: 16 Max Pearce, 17 Ioan Emanuel, 18 Sam Wainwright, 19 James Botham, 20 Taine Basham, 21 Ellis Bevan, 22 Harri Wilde, 23 Cornel Smit
Venue: Stadio Lanfranchi, Parma
Kick-off: 13.00 IRE & UK / 14.00 ITA / 15.00 SA
Referee: Marius van der Westhuizen (SARU, 27th league game)
Assistant Referees: Russo Filippo (FIR), Riccardo Angelucci (FIR)
TMO: Colin Brett (SRU)
Live on: Sky Italia, Premier Sports, SuperSport, Flo Rugby & URC.tv
Munster v Stormers
Prediction: Munster by 12
Munster: 15 Shane Daly, 14 Diarmuid Kilgallen, 13 Tom Farrell, 12 Alex Nankivell, 11 Thaakir Abrahams, 10 Jack Crowley, 9 Craig Casey, 8 Gavin Coombes, 7 Jack O’Donoghue, 6 Tadhg Beirne (c), 5 Fineen Wycherley, 4 Tom Ahern, 3 John Ryan, 2 Diarmuid Barron, 1 Jeremy Loughman
Replacements: 16 Niall Scannell, 17 Michael Milne, 18 Ronan Foxe, 19 Edwin Edogbo, 20 John Hodnett, 21 Ethan Coughlan, 22 Tony Butler, 23 Dan Kelly
Stormers: 15 Warrick Gelant, 14 Dylan Maart, 13 Wandisile Simelane, 12 Ruhan Nel, 11 Leolin Zas, 10 Jurie Matthee, 9 Stefan Ungerer, 8 Evan Roos, 7 Marcel Theunissen, 6 Paul de Villiers, 5 Connor Evans, 4 Salmaan Moerat (c), 3 Neethling Fouché, 2 André-Hugo Venter, 1 Vernon Matongo
Replacements: 16 JJ Kotzé, 17 Oli Kebble, 18 Sazi Sandi, 19 Adré Smith, 20 JD Schickerling, 21 Ruan Ackermann, 22 Dewaldt Duvenage, 23 Clinton Swart
Venue: Thomond Park, Limerick
Kick-off: 17.30 IRE & UK / 18.30 ITA / 19.30 SA
Referee: Andrea Piardi (FIR, 58th league game)
Assistant Referees: Andrew Cole (IRFU), Andrew Fogarty (IRFU)
TMO: Matteo Liperini (FIR)
Live on: Premier Sports, SuperSport, Flo Rugby & URC.tv
Edinburgh v Ospreys
Prediction: Edinburgh by 25
Edinburgh: 15 Wes Goosen, 14 Lewis Wells, 13 Piers O’Conor, 12 Findlay Thomson, 11 Duhan van der Merwe, 10 Ross Thompson, 9 Ben Vellacott, 8 Tom Currie, 7 Ben Muncaster, 6 Liam McConnell, 5 Grant Gilchrist (c), 4 Callum Hunter-Hill, 3 Paul Hill, 2 Harri Morris, 1 Pierre Schoeman
Replacements: 16 Dylan Richardson, 17 Boan Venter, 18 Ollie Blyth-Lafferty, 19 Marshall Sykes, 20 Magnus Bradbury, 21 Conor McAlpine, 22 Cammy Scott, 23 Harry Paterson
Ospreys: 15 Max Nagy, 14 Daniel Kasende, 13 Evardi Boshoff, 12 Phil Cokanasiga, 11 Iestyn Hopkins, 10 Jack Walsh (cc), 9 Luke Davies, 8 Ross Moriarty, 7 Gwilym Evans, 6 Lewis Lloyd, 5 Huw Sutton, 4 Ryan Smith, 3 Tom Botha, 2 Sam Parry (cc), 1 Cameron Jones
Replacements: 16 Efan Daniel, 17 Steffan Thomas, 18 Kian Hire, 19 Lewis Jones, 20 Will Greatbanks, 21 Scott Whitlock, 22 Luke Morgan, 23 Harri Houston
Venue: Hive Stadium, Edinburgh
Kick-off: 17.30 IRE & UK / 18.30 ITA / 19.30 SA
Referee: Peter Martin (IRFU, 9th league game)
Assistant Referees: Finlay Brown (SRU), Ciaran Stark (SRU)
TMO: Brian McNeice (IRFU)
Live on: Premier Sports, SuperSport, Flo Rugby & URC.tv
James Ryan learns ban fate after thuggish hit on Malcolm Marx
Connacht v Sharks
Prediction: Connacht by 3
Connacht: 15 Seán Naughton, 14 Chay Mullins, 13 Hugh Gavin, 12 Cathal Forde, 11 Shayne Bolton, 10 Josh Ioane, 9 Ben Murphy, 8 Sean Jansen, 7 Paul Boyle (c), 6 Josh Murphy, 5 Darragh Murray, 4 Niall Murray, 3 Jack Aungier, 2 Dave Heffernan, 1 Jordan Duggan
Replacements: 16 Eoin de Buitléar, 17 Denis Buckley, 18 Sam Illo, 19 David O’Connor, 20 Seán O’Brien, 21 Matthew Devine, 22 Bundee Aki, 23 Sam Gilbert
Sharks: 15 Jordan Hendrikse, 14 Edwill van der Merwe, 13 Jurenzo Julius, 12 Francois Venter, 11 Makazole Mapimpi, 10 George Whitehead, 9 Jaden Hendrikse, 8 Emmanuel Tshituka, 7 Vincent Tshituka (c), 6 Matt Romao, 5 Marvin Orie, 4 Jason Jenkins, 3 Hanro Jacobs, 2 Fez Mbatha, 1 Phatu Ganyane
Replacements: 16 Eduan Swart, 17 Lee-Marvin Mazibuko, 18 Mawande Mdanda, 19 Emile van Heerden, 20 Phepsi Buthelezi, 21 Grant Williams, 22 Le Roux Malan, 23 Hakeem Kunene
Venue: Dexcom Stadium, Galway
Kick-off: 19.45 IRE & UK / 20.45 ITA / 21.45 SA
Referee: Ben Breakspear (WRU, 14th league game)
Assistant Referees: Andrew Brace (IRFU), Jack MacNeice (IRFU)
TMO: Keith David (WRU)
Live on: TG4, Premier Sports, SuperSport, Flo Rugby & URC.tv
Scarlets v Glasgow Warriors
Prediction: Glasgow by 6
Scarlets: 15 Jac Davies, 14 Iori Badham, 13 Macs Page, 12 Eddie James, 11 Tomi Lewis, 10 Sam Costelow, 9 Gareth Davies, 8 Fletcher Anderson, 7 Josh Macleod (c), 6 Max Douglas, 5 Sam Lousi, 4 Jake Ball, 3 Archer Holz, 2 Ryan Elias, 1 Kemsley Mathias
Replacements: 16 Marnus van der Merwe, 17 Sam O’Connor, 18 Henry Thomas, 19 Harvey Cuckson, 20 Dan Davis, 21 Dane Blacker, 22 Carwyn Leggatt-Jones, 23 Gabe McDonald
Glasgow Warriors: 15 Josh McKay, 14 Kyle Rowe, 13 Ollie Smith, 12 Stafford McDowall (c), 11 Kerr Johnston, 10 Dan Lancaster, 9 Ben Afshar, 8 Macenzzie Duncan, 7 Angus Fraser, 6 Gregor Brown, 5 Jare Oguntibeju, 4 Alex Craig, 3 Patrick Schickerling, 2 Johnny Matthews, 1 Jamie Bhatti
Replacements: 16 Gregor Hiddleston, 17 Nathan McBeth, 18 Sam Talakai, 19 Max Williamson, 20 Alex Samuel, 21 Ally Miller, 22 George Horne, 23 Adam Hastings
Venue: Parc y Scarlets, Llanelli
Kick-off: 19.45 IRE & UK / 20.45 ITA / 21.45 SA
Referee: Chris Allison (SARU, 5th league game)
Assistant Referees: Ben Whitehouse (WRU), Adam Jones (WRU)
TMO: Morne Ferreira (SARU)
Live on: S4C, Premier Sports, SuperSport, Flo Rugby & URC.tv
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