Fiji Sevens star to make Edinburgh debut against Scarlets

David Skippers
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There are five PRO14 fixtures scheduled for Saturday with the Dragons, Benetton, Connacht, Zebre and Edinburgh all hosting their respective matches.

Dragons v Glasgow Warriors

Back-row Ollie Griffiths makes a return to the Dragons starting line-up as they host Glasgow Warriors at Rodney Parade.

Griffiths has been out of action since the opening day clash with Munster. However, the dynamic back-row forward now makes a comeback as Dragons are back in action on home soil.

Griffiths is named at number eight, replacing the injured Lewis Evans, and is part of two changes to the starting line-up named by director of rugby Dean Ryan.

Centre Jack Dixon also returns in midfield to partner Adam Warren.

Prop Brok Harris is fit to start the game after coming off early against Connacht last time out.

Scrum-half Luke Baldwin, on a season-long loan from Worcester Warriors, could make his first-ever appearance for Dragons after being named among the replacements.

A changed bench also sees recalls for hooker Rhys Lawrence, prop Josh Reynolds, back-row James Benjamin and fly-half Arwel Robson.

Meanwhile, Niko Matawalu makes an immediate return to Glasgow Warriors action after his Rugby World Cup exploits, with the Fijian named on the wing by head coach Dave Rennie.

The club centurion is one of four changes to the starting XV from the side that claimed victory over Cardiff Blues last time out, as the Warriors go in search of a first away win of the new campaign.

Glenn Bryce comes into the side at full-back, as Kyle Steyn joins Matawalu on the wings.

Stafford McDowall and Nick Grigg continue as the centre partnership, with Nick Frisby and Brandon Thomson once again named as the starting half-backs.

Having missed the victory over Cardiff Blues due to a head knock, Oli Kebble returns to pack down at loosehead prop having successfully completed the return-to-play protocols.

Grant Stewart and Adam Nicol join Kebble in the front-row, with Rob Harley and Kiran McDonald continuing in an unchanged second-row.

The final change to the starting line-up comes in the back-row, as Adam Ashe lines up at blindside flanker for his first appearance of the new campaign.

Callum Gibbins will once more captain the side from the openside flank, with Matt Fagerson starting at number eight.

The teams:

Dragons: 15 Jordan Williams, 14 Owen Jenkins, 13 Adam Warren, 12 Jack Dixon, 11 Ashton Hewitt, 10 Sam Davies, 9 Rhodri Williams (c), 8 Ollie Griffiths, 7 Taine Basham, 6 Huw Taylor, 5 Matthew Screech, 4 Joe Davies, 3 Leon Brown, 2 Richard Hibbard, 1 Brok Harris
Replacements: 16 Rhys Lawrence, 17 Josh Reynolds, 18 Lloyd Fairbrother, 19 Max Williams, 20 James Benjamin, 21 Luke Baldwin, 22 Arwel Robson, 23 Tyler Morgan

Glasgow Warriors: 15 Glenn Bryce, 14 Kyle Steyn, 13 Nick Grigg, 12 Stafford McDowall, 11 Niko Matawalu, 10 Brandon Thomson, 9 Nick Frisby, 8 Matt Fagerson, 7 Callum Gibbins (c), 6 Adam Ashe, 5 Kiran McDonald, 4 Rob Harley, 3 Adam Nicol, 2 Grant Stewart, 1 Oli Kebble
Replacements: 16 Johnny Matthews, 17 Alex Allan, 18 D’arcy Rae, 19 Andrew Davidson, 20 Chris Fusaro, 21 Jamie Dobie, 22 Huw Jones, 23 Ruaridh Jackson

Venue: Rodney Parade
Kick-off: 15:00 BST (14:00 GMT)
Referee: George Clancy (Ireland)
Assistant referees: Adam Jones (Wales), Chris Busby (Ireland)
TMO: Simon McDowell (Ireland)

Benetton vs Southern Kings

Benetton head coach Kieran Crowley has named his starting line-up to take on the Southern Kings in their bottom-of-the-Conference B table clash in Treviso.

Alberto Sgarbi captains the Italian outfit and he starts at inside centre alongside Ignacio Brex in midfield. Luca Sperandio lines up at full-back and is joined in the back three by starting wings Ratuva Tavuyara and Angelo Esposito while Ian Keatley and Dewaldt Duvenage are the half-back combination,

In the forwards, Tomas Baravalle is the starting hooker and he will have props Tiziano Pasquali and Federico Zani packing down next to him in the front-row while Eli Snyman and Niccolò Cannone start in the second-row.

Marco Barbini and Sebastian Negri are the flankers with Toa Halafihi starting at number eight.

Meanwhile, Sibusiso Sithole and Bobby de Wee will earn starting berths for the Southern Kings when they take on Benetton at Stadio Monigo.

Former South Africa Sevens star, Sithole, who provided back-line cover from the bench in the opening three matches of the 2019/20 PRO14 season at the Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium, will make his first start of the season at outside centre where he will partner up with Tertius Kruger for the midfield combination.

The skilful, strong and experienced Sithole replaces JT Jackson in the team. Jackson has been rested for the Southern Kings’ first tour match of the season.

Meanwhile, in the forwards, the versatile De Wee will make his second start of the season after previously being in the starting XV for the South African side’s opening match against Cardiff Blues.

Despite having played at blindside flank in the season-opener and having provided cover both in the second-row and at loose-forward, the 25-year-old will start at number four lock where he replaces Jerry Sexton.

Hooker Jacques du Toit will also earn his first starting berth for the Southern Kings in a rotational switch with Alandre van Rooyen as the rest of the pack remains the same.

In the back-line, Josh Allderman will don the number nine jersey following the injury to vice-captain, Stefan Ungerer in the previous match against Ulster.

Also making a return to the team is winger Christopher Hollis, who replaces the injured Courtney Winnaar in the side.

An exciting inclusion on the bench will see young fly-half Siyabonga Masuku possibly making his PRO14 and Southern Kings debut as back-line cover. Thembelani Bholi will also make his first PRO14 appearance after his return to the Port Elizabeth-based side.

The teams:

Benetton: 15 Luca Sperandio, 14 Ratuva Tavuyara, 13 Ignacio Brex, 12 Alberto Sgarbi (c), 11 Angelo Esposito, 10 Ian Keatley, 9 Dewaldt Duvenage, 8 Toa Halafihi, 7 Marco Barbini, 6 Sebastian Negri, 5 Eli Snyman, 4 Niccolò Cannone, 3 Tiziano Pasquali, 2 Tomas Baravalle, 1 Federico Zani
Replacements: 16 Engjel Makelara, 17 Cherif Traore, 18 Michele Mancini Parri, 19 Federico Ruzza, 20 Giovanni Pettinelli, 21 Tito Tebaldi, 22 Antonio Rizzi, 23 Marco Zanon

Southern Kings: 15 Masixole Banda, 14 Christopher Hollis, 13 Sibusiso Sithole, 12 Tertius Kruger, 11 Josiah Twum-Boafo, 10 Demetri Catrakilis, 9 Josh Allderman, 8 Ruaan Lerm, 7 Tienie Burger, 6 Lusanda Badiyana (c), 5 Aston Fortuin, 4 Bobby de Wee, 3 Pieter Scholtz, 2 Jacques du Toit, 1 Juan Schoeman
Replacements: 16 Alandre van Rooyen, 17 Xandre Vos, 18 Rossouw de Klerk, 19 JC Astle, 20 Thembelani Bholi, 21 Erigh Louw, 22 Siya Masuku, 23 Erich Cronje

Venue: Stadio Monigo
Kick-off: 16:00 local (15:00 BST, 14:00 GMT)
Referee: Dan Jones (Wales)
Assistant referees: Marius Mitrea (Italy), Chris Williams (Wales)
TMO: Tim Hayes (Wales)

Connacht v Cheetahs

Connacht head coach Andy Friend has made four changes to his starting team from the side that recorded a bonus-point win over Dragons two weeks ago.

With Tiernan O’Halloran and Paddy McAllister out of action until December, Connacht have had to reshuffle slightly but Darragh Leader has returned from a leg injury to take his place on the bench.

Stephen Fitzgerald comes straight into the side at full-back for the injured O’Halloran. He is part of a new-look back three that sees Niyi Adeolokun and John Porch on the wings. Fitzgerald’s brother, Conor, is retained at fly-half following his impressive start to the season, and he forms a half-back partnership with Kieran Marmion.

The midfield remains unchanged with Peter Robb and Kyle Godwin continuing their partnership.

Loosehead prop Denis Buckley comes back into the side for his first start of the season, alongside hooker Tom McCartney and Finlay Bealham at tighthead.

The second-row sees Gavin Thornbury and Quinn Roux together for the fourth straight game, while the back-row also has a familiar look to it with captain Jarrad Butler at openside, Eoghan Masterson at blindside and Paul Boyle occupying the number eight jersey.

Meanwhile, Cheetahs head coach Hawies Fourie has made some changes to his team after their last match against Munster in Bloemfontein a fortnight ago.

Aranos Coetzee returns from World Cup duty with Namibia and will start at tighthead prop with Luan de Bruin providing cover on the bench. Jasper Wiese will be starting at number eight, replacing Henco Venter who has joined the Sharks.

In the back-line, Dries Swanepoel returns from injury, starting at outside centre next to Benhard Janse van Rensburg, who will wear the number 12 jersey.

Clayton Blommetjies starts on the right wing alongside Rhyno Smith (full-back) and fellow wing Anthony Volmink with William Small-Smith providing cover from the bench.

Wilmar Arnoldi and George Whitehead are set to make their PRO14 debuts if they set foot on field.

The teams:

Connacht: 15 Stephen Fitzgerald, 14 Niyi Adeolokun, 13 Kyle Godwin, 12 Peter Robb, 11 John Porch, 10 Conor Fitzgerald, 9 Kieran Marmion, 8 Paul Boyle, 7 Jarrad Butler (c), 6 Eoghan Masterson, 5 Quinn Roux, 4 Gavin Thornbury, 3 Finlay Bealham, 2 Tom McCartney, 1 Denis Buckley
Replacements: 16 Dave Heffernan, 17 Matthew Burke, 18 Dominic Robertson-McCoy, 19 Ultan Dillane, 20 Cillian Gallagher, 21 Caolin Blade, 22 Tom Farrell, 23 Darragh Leader

Cheetahs: 15 Rhyno Smith, 14 Clayton Blommetjies, 13 Dries Swanepoel, 12 Benhard Janse van Rensburg, 11 Anthony Volmink, 10 Tian Schoeman, 9 Ruan Pienaar (c), 8 Jasper Wiese, 7 Junior Pokomela, 6 Gerhard Olivier, 5 Walt Steenkamp, 4 Sintu Manjezi, 3 Aranos Coetzee, 2 Joseph Dweba, 1 Ox Nche
Replacements: 16 Wilmar Arnoldi, 17 Boan Venter, 18 Luan de Bruin, 19 JP du Preez, 20 Sias Koen, 21 Tian Meyer, 22 George Whitehead, 23 William Small-Smith

Venue: The Sportsground
Kick-off: 17:15 BST (16:15 GMT)
Referee: Ben Whitehouse (Wales)
Assistant referees: Sean Gallagher (Ireland), Gwyn Morris (Wales)
TMO: Sean Brickell (Wales)

Zebre v Leinster

Zebre head coach Michael Bradley has made seven changes to his side to take on Leinster at Stadio Sergio Lanfranchi in Parma.

Bradley received a boost after 12 players returned from World Cup duty with Italy in Japan. Apart from hooker Luca Bigi, who is being rested and the suspended Andrea Lovotti, the other 10 internationals returned to training ahead of the Leinster clash and six of them will be in action this weekend.

Veteran second-row George Biagi will captain the side.

In the back-line, Carlo Canna starts at fly-half and is joined in the half-backs by Joshua Renton. Elsewhere in the backs, Edoardo Padovani and Mattia Bellini are the two wings and are joined in the back three by Michelangelo Biondelli while Giulio Bisegni and Enrico Lucchin are the centre pairing.

David Sisi starts at number while Johan Meyer and Giovanni Licata are the starting flankers. Biagi packs down alongside Mick Kearney in the second-row with Marco Manfredi (hooker), Giosuè Zilocchi and Danilo Fischetti (props) the front-row trio.

Meanwhile, Leinster head coach Leo Cullen has made some alterations from his run-on side that accounted for Edinburgh in Round 3.

Hugo Keenan continues at full-back after his impressive start to the season, but there are two changes on the wings with Adam Byrne coming in on the right and Cian Kelleher making his first start of the season and indeed involved in a matchday squad for the first time since his return to the club from Connacht.

Kelleher already has one try in seven games to his name from his time in the Leinster Academy.

Joe Tomane and Rory O’Loughlin continue their partnership in the centre, as do Jamison Gibson-Park and Ross Byrne at half-back with Byrne winning his 75th cap in the Stadio Sergio Lanfranchi.

Peter Dooley and Michael Bent are the starting props once again with James Tracy making his first start of the season at hooker. Ross Molony comes into the second-row and starts alongside captain Scott Fardy.

In the back-row Josh Murphy starts at blindside with Scott Penny at openside and Max Deegan at number eight. Deegan wins his 50th cap for Leinster.

On the bench Bryan Byrne and Ryan Baird are involved for the first time this season.

The teams:

Zebre: 15 Michelangelo Biondelli, 14 Edoardo Padovani, 13 Giulio Bisegni, 12 Enrico Lucchin, 11 Mattia Bellini, 10 Carlo Canna, 9 Joshua Renton, 8 David Sisi, 7 Johan Meyer, 6 Giovanni Licata, 5 George Biagi (c), 4 Mick Kearney, 3 Giosuè Zilocchi, 2 Marco Manfredi, 1 Danilo Fischetti
Replacements: 16 Oliviero Fabiani, 17 Daniele Rimpelli, 18 Alexandru Tarus, 19 Leonard Krumov, 20 Renato Giammarioli, 21 Marcello Violi, 22 Tommaso Boni, 23 James Elliott

Leinster: 15 Hugo Keenan, 14 Adam Byrne, 13 Rory O’Loughlin, 12 Joe Tomane, 11 Cian Kelleher, 10 Ross Byrne, 9 Jamison Gibson-Park, 8 Max Deegan, 7 Scott Penny, 6 Josh Murphy, 5 Scott Fardy (c), 4 Ross Molony, 3 Michael Bent, 2 James Tracy, 1 Peter Dooley
Replacements: 16 Bryan Byrne, 17 Michael Milne, 18 Vakh Abdaladze, 19 Ryan Baird, 20 Caelan Doris, 21 Hugh O’Sullivan, 22 Harry Byrne, 23 Jimmy O’Brien

Venue: Stadio Sergio Lanfranchi
Kick-off: 18:15 local (17:15 BST, 16:15 GMT)
Referee: Craig Evans (Wales)
Assistant referees: Manuel Bottino (Italy), Dai Cambourne (Wales)
TMO: Jon Mason (Wales)

Edinburgh v Scarlets

Fijian international wing Eroni Sau makes his debut as Edinburgh welcome back several Scotland stars from Rugby World Cup for their PRO14 match against Scarlets at Murrayfield.

The Fiji Sevens star is named in the starting line-up for the first time this season following his summer move from Perpignan, while Scotland international Blair Kinghorn returns immediately to the starting XV after being named at full-back.

With six total changes to the side that faced Leinster two-weeks ago, the team selection also sees centre Matt Scott and lock Fraser McKenzie return from injury to start, while Simon Hickey and Ally Miller get the nod at fly-half and blindside flanker respectively.

Scotland stars Magnus Bradbury and Henry Pyrgos are named among the replacements and if called upon will both make their first appearance of the season.

South African wing Duhan van der Merwe is the only player to retain his place in the back-three as Kinghorn and Sau get the nod at full-back and wing respectively.

Scotland international centre Scott returns from injury to make his first appearance since the Round One victory over Zebre. He is partnered in midfield by Mark Bennett, who is Edinburgh’s top try-scorer in the Championship with four scores so far this season.

At half-back, Kiwi fly-half Hickey makes his first start of the season, with Nic Groom – who skippers the side – once again named at scrum-half.

An unchanged front-row sees South African hooker Mike Willemse pack down alongside compatriot Pierre Schoeman and Italian international tighthead prop, Pietro Ceccarelli.

Club centurion McKenzie is once again fit and named at lock, with Murray Douglas – ever-present this season – selected alongside him in the second-row.

The inclusion of Miller at bindside flanker is the only alteration to an otherwise unchanged back-row as openside flanker, Luke Crosbie, and number eight, Nick Haining, form the remainder of the pack.

Meanwhile, Ioan Nicholas makes his first PRO14 appearance of the season as one of three changes to the Scarlets side.

The 21-year-old Nicholas played most of his rugby last season on the wing but comes in at centre for the injured Paul Asquith, who picked up a blow to his face late on during the 54-10 victory over Zebre last time out.

Elsewhere in the back division, Tom James replaces fellow Wales international Steff Evans, who is ruled out because of illness. James links up with Johnny McNicholl and Ryan Conbeer in the back three.

Steff Hughes again leads the side from centre, partnering Nicholas in a home-grown midfield, while Dan Jones and Kieran Hardy continue their half-back partnership.

Up front, there is just one change with Steve Cummins drafted in at second-row for the injured Lewis Rawlins, who is ruled out with a shoulder issue.

Wales props Rob Evans and Samson Lee pack down in the front-row, while hooker Taylor Davies is rewarded for his try-scoring performance against Zebre with a second PRO14 start.

Head coach Brad Mooar keeps faith with the same back-row that has started all three previous wins – Tom Phillips, Josh Macleod and Uzair Cassiem, who has made more carries than any player in the Championship in the opening three rounds.

Samoa international Kieron Fonotia becomes the first of the Scarlets’ World Cup contingent to return to action and is named among the replacements.

The teams:

Edinburgh: 15 Blair Kinghorn, 14 Eroni Sau, 13 Mark Bennett, 12 Matt Scott, 11 Duhan van der Merwe, 10 Simon Hickey, 9 Nic Groom (c), 8 Nick Haining, 7 Luke Crosbie, 6 Ally Miller, 5 Murray Douglas, 4 Fraser McKenzie, 3 Pietro Ceccarelli, 2 Mike Willemse, 1 Pierre Schoeman
Replacements: 16 Cameron Fenton, 17 Jamie Bhatti, 18 Murray McCallum, 19 Sam Thomson, 20 Magnus Bradbury, 21 Henry Pyrgos, 22 Jaco van der Walt, 23 George Taylor

Scarlets: 15 Johnny McNicholl, 14 Ryan Conbeer, 13 Steff Hughes (c), 12 Ioan Nicholas, 11 Tom James, 10 Dan Jones, 9 Kieran Hardy, 8 Uzair Cassiem, 7 Josh Macleod, 6 Tom Phillips, 5 Juandre Kruger, 4 Steve Cummins, 3 Samson Lee, 2 Taylor Davies, 1 Rob Evans
Replacements: 16 Marc Jones, 17 Phil Price, 18 Werner Kruger, 19 Josh Helps, 20 Dan Davis, 21 Jonathan Evans, 22 Angus O’Brien 23 Kieron Fonotia

Venue: Murrayfield
Kick-off: 19:35 BST (18:35 GMT)
Referee: Frank Murphy (Ireland)
Assistant referees: Sam Grove-White (Scotland), Eddie Hogan-O’Connell (Ireland)
TMO: Olly Hodges

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