Champions Cup: Peter O’Mahony, Joey Carbery and Simon Zebo back for Munster’s clash with Exeter Chiefs
Peter O'Mahony of Munster very tired during the Heineken Champions Cup match between Munster Rugby and Exeter Chiefs at Thomond Park in Limerick, Ireland on January 19, 2019 (Photo by Andrew Surma/NurPhoto)
The European Champions Cup returns this weekend with the second leg of the last-16 ties, including Ulsster’s clash with defending champions Toulouse at the Kingspan Stadium.
Leinster v Connacht
Prediction: Leinster by 10
The teams:
Leinster: 15 Hugo Keenan, 14 Jimmy O’Brien, 13 Garry Ringrose, 12 Robbie Henshaw, 11 James Lowe, 10 Johnny Sexton (c), 9 Jamison Gibson-Park, 8 Jack Conan, 7 Josh van der Flier, 6 Caelan Doris, 5 Josh Murphy, 4 Ross Molony, 3 Tadhg Furlong, 2 Rónan Kelleher, 1 Andrew Porter
Replacements: 16 Dan Sheehan, 17 Ed Byrne, 18 Michael Ala’alatoa, 19 Devin Toner, 20 Rhys Ruddock, 21 Luke McGrath, 22 Ross Byrne, 23 Ciarán Frawley
Connacht: 15 Tiernan O’Halloran, 14 John Porch, 13 Tom Farrell, 12 Bundee Aki, 11 Mack Hansen, 10 Jack Carty (c), 9 Caolin Blade, 8 Jarrad Butler, 7 Conor Oliver, 6 Cian Prendergast, 5 Leva Fifita, 4 Gavin Thornbury, 3 Finlay Bealham, 2 Dave Heffernan, 1 Matthew Burke
Replacements: 16 Jonny Murphy, 17 Denis Buckley, 18 Jack Aungier, 19 Oisín Dowling, 20 Abraham Papali’i, 21 Kieran Marmion, 22 Sammy Arnold, 23 Conor Fitzgerald
Venue: Aviva Stadium
Kick-off: 17:30 BST (16:30 GMT)
Referee: Luke Pearce (England)
Assistant referees: Dan Jones (England), Paul Dix (England)
TMO: Tom Foley (England)
Bristol Bears v Sale Sharks
Prediction: Bristol by 5
The teams:
Bristol: 15 Rich Lane, 14 Luke Morahan, 13 Piers O’Conor, 12 Sam Bedlow, 11 Alapati Leiua, 10 Callum Sheedy, 9 Harry Randall, 8 Nathan Hughes, 7 Sam Jeffries, 6 Chris Vui, 5 Joe Joyce (c), 4 Dave Attwood, 3 Kyle Sinckler, 2 Jake Kerr, 1 Jake Woolmore
Replacements: 16 Harry Thacker, 17 Yann Thomas, 18 John Afoa, 19 Steven Luatua, 20 Fitz Harding, 21 Andy Uren, 22 Semi Radradra, 23 Charles Piutau
Sale: 15 Luke James, 14 Tom Roebuck, 13 Sam James, 12 Manu Tuilagi, 11 Aaron Reed, 10 Robert du Preez, 9 Faf de Klerk, 8 Dan du Preez, 7 Jono Ross (c), 6 Jean-Luc du Preez, 5 Lood de Jager, 4 Cobus Wiese, 3 Nick Schonert, 2 Akker van der Merwe, 1 Bevan Rodd
Replacements: 16 Ewan Ashman, 17 Simon McIntyre, 18 Coenie Oosthuizen, 19 JP du Preez, 20 Tommy Taylor, 21 Gus Warr, 22 Rohan Janse van Rensburg, 23 Jack Metcalf
Venue: Ashton Gate
Kick-off: 20:00 BST (19:00 GMT)
Referee: Frank Murphy (Ireland)
Assistant referees: Peter Martin (Ireland), Paul Haycock (Ireland)
TMO: Brian MacNeice (Ireland)
Saturday
Harlequins v Montpellier
Prediction: Harlequins by 8
The teams:
Harlequins: 15 Huw Jones, 14 Louis Lynagh, 13 Joe Marchant, 12 Andre Esterhuizen, 11 Cadan Murley, 10 Marcus Smith, 9 Danny Care, 8 Alex Dombrandt (c), 7 Will Evans, 6 George Hammond, 5 Hugh Tizard, 4 Matt Symons, 3 Will Collier, 2 Jack Walker , 1 Joe Marler
Replacements: 16 Joe Gray, 17 Simon Kerrod, 18 Wilco Louw, 19 Matas Jurevicius, 20 Luke Wallace, 21 Lewis Gjaltema, 22 Will Edwards, 23 Nick David
Montpellier: 15 Julien Tisseron, 14 Gabriel N’gandebe, 13 Yvan Reilhac, 12. Handré Pollard, 11 Pierre Lucas, 10 Louis Foursans, 9 Aubin Eymeri, 8 Alexandre Becognee, 7 Yacouba Camara (c), 6 Fulgence Ouedraogo, 5 Paul Willemse, 4 Florian Verhaeghe, 3 Henry Thomas, 2 Guilhem Guirado, 1 Mikheil Nariashvili
Replacements: 16 Jeremie Maurouard, 17 Robert Rodgers, 18 Titi Lamositele, 19 Zach Mercer, 20 Martin Doan, 21 Geoffrey Doumayrou, 22 Anthony Bouthier, 23 Bastien Chalureau
Venue: Twickenham Stoop
Kick-off: 12:30 BST (11:30 GMT)
Referee: Mike Adamson (Scotland)
Assistant referees: Ian Kenny (Scotland), Dave Sutherland (Scotland)
TMO: Sean Brickell (Wales)
Munster v Exeter Chiefs
Prediction: Munster by 7
The teams:
Munster: 15 Mike Haley, 14 Keith Earls, 13 Chris Farrell, 12 Damian de Allende, 11 Simon Zebo, 10 Joey Carbery, 9 Conor Murray, 8 Jack O’Donoghue, 7 John Hodnett, 6 Peter O’Mahony (c), 5 Fineen Wycherley, 4 Jean Kleyn, 3 John Ryan, 2 Niall Scannell, 1 Josh Wycherley
Replacements: 16 Diarmuid Barron, 17 Jeremy Loughman, 18 Stephen Archer, 19 Jason Jenkins, 20 Thomas Ahern, 21 Craig Casey, 22 Ben Healy, 23 Alex Kendellen
Exeter: 15 Stuart Hogg, 14 Olly Woodburn, 13 Henry Slade, 12 Ian Whitten, 11 Tom O’Flaherty, 10 Joe Simmonds, 9 Sam Maunder, 8 Jacques Vermeulen, 7 Jannes Kirsten, 6 Dave Ewers, 5 Sam Skinner, 4 Jonny Gray, 3 Harry Williams, 2 Jack Yeandle (c), 1 Alec Hepburnb
Replacements: 16 Jack Innard, 17 Billy Keast, 18 Patrick Schickerling, 19 Richard Capstick, 20 Santiago Grondona, 21 Jack Maunder, 22 Tom Gilbert-Hendrickson, 23 Josh Hodge
Venue: Thomond Park
Kick-off: 15:00 BST (14:00 GMT)
Referee: Mathieu Raynal (France)
Assistant referees: Thomas Charabas (France), Jonathan Dufort (France)
TMO: Philippe Bonhoure (France)
La Rochelle v Bordeaux-Begles
Prediction: La Rochelle by 15
The teams:
La Rochelle: 15 Brice Dulin, 14 Martin Alonso Munoz, 13 Eneriko Buliruarua, 12 Jonathan Danty, 11 Raymond Rhule, 10 Ihaia West, 9 Tawera Kerr Barlow, 8 Grégory Alldritt (c), 7 Matthias Haddad, 6 Victor Vito, 5 Rémi Picquette, 4 Romain Sazy, 3 Uini Atonio, 2 Facundo Bosch, 1 Dany Priso
Replacements: 16 Pierre Bourgarit, 17 Guram Papidze, 18 Joel Sclavi, 19 Will Skelton, 20 Remi Bourdeau, 21 Thomas Berjon, 22 Jules Plisson, 23 Levani Botia
Bordeaux: 15 Nans Ducuing, 14 Federico Mori, 13 Yoram Falatea-Moefana, 12 Gatien Masse, 11 Ben Lam, 10 Matéo Garcia, 9 Maxime Lucu, 8 Maama Vaipulu, 7 Mahamadou Diaby (c), 6 Pierre Bochaton, 5 Alban Roussel, 4 Kane Douglas, 3 Lekso Kaulashvili, 2 Clement Maynadier, 1 Thierry Paiva
Replacements: 16 Maxime Lamothe, 17 Enzo Baggiani, 18 Lasha Tabidze, 19 Thomas Jolmes, 20 Alexandre Roumat, 21 Yann Lesgourgues, 22 Ulupano Seuteni, 23 Geoffrey Cros
Venue: Stade Marcel Deflandre
Kick-off: 16:00 local (15:00 BST, 14:00 GMT)
Referee: Wayne Barnes (England)
Assistant referees: Craig Evans (Wales), Jamie Leahy (England)
TMO: Christophe Ridley (England)
Leicester Tigers v Clermont Auvergne
Prediction: Leicester by 7
The teams:
Leicester: 15 Freddie Steward, 14 Chris Ashton, 13 Matías Moroni, 12 Dan Kelly, 11 Harry Potter, 10 George Ford, 9 Jack van Poortvliet, 8 Hanro Liebenberg, 7 Tommy Reffell, 6 Ollie Chessum, 5 Eli Snyman, 4 Harry Wells, 3 Joe Heyes, 2 Nic Dolly, 1 Ellis Genge (c)
Replacements: 16 Charlie Clare, 17 Francois van Wyk, 18 Dan Cole, 19 Calum Green, 20 Jasper Wiese, 21 Ben Youngs, 22 Freddie Burns, 23 Matt Scott
Clermont: 15 Cheikh Tiberghien, 14 Marvin O’Connor, 13 George Moala, 12 Wesley Fofana, 11 Alivereti Raka, 10 Camille Lopez, 9 Baptiste Jauneau, 8 Fritz Lee, 7 Lucas Dessaigne, 6 Clement Lanen, 5 Miles Amatosero, 4 Thibaud Lanen, 3 Christian Ojovan, 2 Yohan Beheregaray (c), 1 Giorgi Beria
Replacements: 16 Etienne Fourcade, 17 Daniel Bibi Biziwu, 18 Sipili Falatea, 19 Paul Jedrasiak, 20 Judicaël Cancoriet, 21 Morgan Parra, 22 John Joseph Hanrahan, 23 Samuel Ezeala
Venue: Welford Road
Kick-off: 17:30 BST (16:30 GMT)
Referee: Andrew Brace (Ireland)
Assistant referees: tbc
TMO: tbc
Ulster v Toulouse
Prediction: Toulouse by 4
The teams:
Ulster: 15 Mike Lowry, 14 Rob Baloucoune, 13 James Hume, 12 Stuart McCloskey, 11 Ethan McIlroy, 10 Billy Burns, 9 John Cooney, 8 Duane Vermeulen, 7 Nick Timoney, 6 Marcus Rea, 5 Iain Henderson (c), 4 Alan O’Connor, 3 Marty Moore, 2 Rob Herring, 1 Andrew Warwick
Replacements: 16 Brad Roberts, 17 Eric O’Sullivan, 18 Tom O’Toole, 19 Kieran Treadwell, 20 Jordi Murphy, 21 Nathan Doak, 22 Luke Marshall, 23 Rob Lyttle
Toulouse: 15 Thomas Ramos, 14 Dimitri Delibes, 13 Tim Nanai-Williams, 12 Pita Ahki, 11 Matthis Lebel, 10 Romain Ntamack, 9 Antoine Dupont (c), 8 Selevasio Tolofua, 7 Anthony Jelonch, 6 Rynhardt Elstadt, 5 Richie Arnold, 4 Rory Arnold, 3 Charlie Faumuina, 2 Peato Mauvaka, 1 Rodrigue Neti
Replacements: 16 Guillaume Cramont, 17 David Ainu’u, 18 Dorian Aldegheri, 19 Emmanuel Meafou, 20 Thibaud Flament, 21 Antoine Miquel, 22 Baptiste Germain, 23 Lucas Tauzin
Venue: Kingspan Stadium
Kick-off: 20:00 BST (19:00 GMT)
Referee: Matthew Carley (England)
Assistant referees: Andrew Jackson (England), Phil Watters (England)
TMO: Ian Tempest (England)
Sunday
Racing 92 v Stade Francais
Prediction: Racing 92 by 8
The teams:
Racing 92: 15 Louis Dupichot, 14 Teddy Thomas, 13 Gael Fickou, 12 Henry Chavancy (c), 11 Juan Imhoff, 10 Finn Russell, 9 Nolann Le Garrec, 8 Yoan Tanga, 7 Anthime Hemery, 6 Wenceslas Lauret, 5 Boris Palu, 4 Baptiste Chouzenoux, 3 Cedate Gomes Sa, 2 Camille Chat, 1 Guram Gogichashvili
Replacements: 16 Teddy Baubigny, 17 Eddy Ben Arous, 18 Trevor Nyakane, 19 Baptiste Pesenti, 20 Ibrahim Diallo, 21 Maxime Machenaud, 22 Antoine Gibert, 23 Olivier Klemenczak
Stade Francais: 15 Telusa Veainu, 14 Sefa Naivalu, 13 Harry Glover, 12 Alex Arrate, 11 Adrien Lapegue, 10 Nicolas Sanchez, 9 James Hall, 8 Tala Gray (c), 7 Romain Briatte, 6 Loic Godener, 5 Yoann Maestri, 4 Juan Johan Van der Mescht, 3 Nemo Roelofse, 2 Lucas Da Silva, 1 Clément Castets
Replacements: 16 Laurent Panis, 17 Vasil Kakovin, 18 Giorgi Melikidze, 19 Paul Gabrillagues, 20 Charlie Francoz, 21 William Percillier, 22 Joris Segonds, 23 Léo Barre
Venue: La Defense Arena
Kick-off: 16:30 local (15:30 BST, 14:30 GMT)
Referee: Nika Amashukeli (Georgia)
Assistant referees: Adam Jones (Wales), Adam Leal (England)
TMO: Dean Richards (England)