Challenge Cup line-ups: Pool One
Connacht host Bayonne in round 2 of the Amlin Challenge Cup on Friday while Cavalieri travel to London to face Harlequins.
Connacht host Bayonne in round 2 of the Amlin Challenge Cup on Friday while Cavalieri travel to London to face Harlequins.
The fixture is a must-win for the Irish team who were upset 23-21 by Cavalieri in their opening game. Bayonne however got off to a winning start by beating Harlequins 16-12.
Connacht winger Darragh Fanning retains his spot after impressing during his starting debut last weekend in Italy whilst Irish Internationals Gavin Duffy and Sean Cronin return to the squad.
John Muldoon captains the side again after making his return last Saturday to competitive rugby following a broken arm sustained against the All Blacks.
Brett Wilkinson and Jamie Hagan renew their partnership up front. Hagan sat last week out and the 6'3 120kg Ireland U20 tighthead will return to the team refreshed and rested.
Meanwhile, Bayonne have chosen to rotate their squad but have still named a very strong side as former Toulon pivot Sebastien Fauque takes over at fly-half.
Former French international and skipper Rémy Martin features in the back row while former All Black Troy Flavell starts in the second row.
The teams:
Connacht: 15 Gavin Duffy, 14 Darragh Fanning, 13 Niva Ta'auso, 12 Keith Mathews, 11 Fionn Carr, 10 Ian Keatley, 9 Frank Murphy, 8 John Muldoon, 7 Ray Ofisa, 6 Jonny O'Connor, 5 Mike McCarthy, 4 Michael Swift, 3 Jamie Hagan, 2 Sean Cronin, 1 Brett Wilkinson.
Replacements: 16 Adrian Flavin, 17 Barry Fa'amausili, 18 Ronan Loughney, 19 Bernie Upton, 20 Andrew Browne, 21 Cillian Willis, 22 Miah Nikora, 23 Troy Nathan.
Aviron Bayonnais: 15 Pepito Elhorga, 14 Yoann Huget, 13 Thibault Lacroix, 12 Sam Gerber, 11 J-B Peyras Loustalet, 10 Sebastien Fauque, 9 Julien Audy, 8 Marc Baget, 7 Rémy Martin, 6 Julien Puricelli, 5 Troy Flavell, 4 Cameron Treloar, 3 Tonga Lea'aetoa, 2 Arnaud Heguy, 1 Pierre Philippe Lafond,
Replacements:16 David Roumieu, 17 Francois Da Ros, 18 Denis Avril, 19 Robin Linde, 20 Abdellatif Boutaty, 21 Cedric Garcia, 22 Garth Ziegler, 23 Joe Pietersen,
Date: Friday, October 15
Venue: The Sports Ground, Galway
Kick-off: 19:00 BST (18.00 GMT)
Referee: Carlo Damasco
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Harlequins v Cavalieri
Cavalieri Prato will look to build on their opening weekend win over Connacht when they travel to the Stoop.
The Italians edged out Connacht 23-21 at home, but they will face a much tougher prospect on the road.
Former Wasps prop Gabriel Bocca misses out in the only change to the starting XV, with Davide Stefani coming in and Anthony Goti promoted to the bench.
Meanwhile, 19 year old Ross Chisholm will celebrate his 20th birthday 3 days early when he starts at full-back for Quins.
There are a number of changes to the team that started last Sunday in Bayonne.
In the backs, Rory Clegg takes hold of the number 10 shirt, working with Karl Dixon at scrum-half. Tom Williams and Gonzalo Camacho add the pace on the wings and Ollie Smith and Tom Casson combine once again in the centres.
In the forwards, 22 year-old Joe Gray will make his starting debut at hooker, when he joins forces with Ceri Jones and James Johnston in the front row.
George Robson makes his season starting debut after injury and partners Peter Browne in the second row. Tomas Vallejos and Tom Guest join captain Will Skinner in the back row.
Luke Wallace, Dave Moore and Benjamin Urdapilleta will make their season debuts if they come on from the bench.
Harlequins 15 Ross Chisholm, 14 Gonzo Camacho, 13 Ollie Smith, 12 Tom Casson, 11 Tom Williams, 10 Rory Clegg, 9 Karl Dickson, 8 Tom Guest, 7 Will Skinner, 6 Tomas Vallejos, 5 Peter Browne, 4 George Robson, 3 James Johnston, 2 Joe Gray, 1 Ceri Jones,
Replacements:16 Chris Brooker, 17 Mark Lambert, 18 John Andress, 19 Ollie Kohn, 20 Luke Wallace, 21 Dave Moore, 22 Benjamin Urdapilleta, 23 Sam Smith,
Cavalieri Prato: 15 Rima Wakarua, 14 Niccolò Tempestini, 13 Denis Majstorovic, 12 Sebastian Rodwell, 11 Filippo Vezzosi, 10 Alberto Chiesa, 9 Pino Patelli, 8 Noa Soqueta, 7 Filippo Cristiano, 6 Luca Petillo, 5 Wouter Moore, 4 Luca Beccaris, 3 Davide Stefani, 2 Lorenzo Giovanchelli, 1 Leandro Poloni,
Replacements: 16 Alessio Neri, 17 Anthony Goti, 18 Alessandro Borsi, 19 Nicola Belardo, 20 Stefano Canale, 21 Clemens Von Grumbkov, 22 Ed Lewis Pratt, 23 Gerlando Marino.
Date: Saturday, Octover 16
Venue: Twickenham Stoop
Kick-off: 15.00 BST (14.00GMT)
Referee: Andrew Macpherson