James Ryan back from injury to captain Leinster against Ulster while Johan Goosen returns from suspension for Bulls
Leinster and Ireland second-row James Ryan.
The 2023/24 United Rugby Championship (URC) season continues with Round 17’s action and includes the highly anticipated clash between sixth-placed Ulster and Leinster, who are second in the standings, at the Kingspan Stadium on Saturday.
The big news for this weekend’s matches is the return of Ireland second-row James Ryan to Leinster’s matchday squad for that derby.
Ryan, who has been sidelined with an arm injury since January, will captain the Leinstermen.
Meanwhile, the Bulls have also been boosted by the return of Springboks fly-half Johan Goosen from suspension.
Check on the team news for the weekend’s URC matches, here.
Edinburgh v Munster
The teams
Edinburgh: 15 Wes Goosen, 14 Matt Currie, 13 Mark Bennett, 12 James Lang, 11 Duhan van der Merwe, 10 Ben Healy, 9 Ben Vellacott (cc), 8 Viliame Mata, 7 Hamish Watson, 6 Jamie Ritchie, 5 Grant Gilchrist (cc), 4 Sam Skinner, 3 WP Nel, 2 Ewan Ashman, 1 Pierre Schoeman
Replacements: 16 Dave Cherry, 17 Boan Venter, 18 Javan Sebastian, 19 Marshall Sykes, 20 Luke Crosbie, 21 Ali Price, 22 Cammy Scott, 23 Chris Dean
Munster: 15 Mike Haley, 14 Calvin Nash, 13 Antoine Frisch, 12 Alex Nankivell, 11 Shane Daly, 10 Jack Crowley, 9 Craig Casey, 8 Gavin Coombes, 7 Alex Kendellen, 6 Jack O’Donoghue, 5 Tadhg Beirne (c), 4 Fineen Wycherley, 3 Oli Jager, 2 Niall Scannell, 1 Jeremy Loughman
Replacements: 16 Eoghan Clarke, 17 Mark Donnelly, 18 John Ryan, 19 RG Snyman, 20 Tom Ahern, 21 Conor Murray, 22 Rory Scannell, 23 Brian Gleeson
Venue: Hive Stadium
Kick-off: 19:35 BST
Referee: Gianluca Gnecchi (FIR)
Assistant Referees: Ru Campbell (SRU), Finlay Brown (SRU)
TMO: Stu Terheege (RFU)
Zebre Parma v Scarlets
The teams
Zebre Parma: 15 Geronimo Prisciantelli, 14 Jacopo Trulla, 13 Luca Morisi, 12 Enrico Lucchin, 11 Lorenzo Pani, 10 Giovanni Montemauri, 9 Gonzalo Garcia, 8 Giovanni Licata (C), 7 Davide Ruggeri, 6 Giacomo Ferrari, 5 Andrea Zambonin, 4 Leonard Krumov, 3 Muhamed Hasa, 2 Giampietro Ribaldi, 1 Danilo Fischetti
Replacements: 16 Tommaso Di Bartolomeo, 17 Alessio Sanavia, 18 Juan Pitinari, 19 David Sisi, 20 Matteo Canali, 21 Thomas Dominguez, 22 Fetuli Paea, 23 Bautista Stavile
Scarlets: 15 Ioan Nicholas, 14 Tomi Lewis, 13 Johnny Williams, 12 Eddie James, 11 Ryan Conbeer, 10 Ioan Lloyd, 9 Gareth Davies, 8 Carwyn Tuipulotu, 7 Dan Davis, 6 Taine Plumtree, 5 Morgan Jones, 4 Alex Craig, 3 Harri O’Connor, 2 Ryan Elias (c), 1 Kemsley Mathias
Replacements: 16 Shaun Evans, 17 Wyn Jones, 18 Sam Wainwright, 19 Jarrod Taylor, 20 Ben Williams, 21 Kieran Hardy, 22 Sam Costelow, 23 Macs Page
Venue: Stadio Lanfranchi, Parma
Kick-off: 20:35 local (19:35 BST)
Referee: Sam Grove-White (SRU)
Assistant Referees: Clara Munarini (FIR), Alberto Falvero (FIR)
TMO: Colin Brett (SRU)
Saturday
Bulls v Benetton
The teams
Bulls: 15 Willie Le Roux, 14 Canan Moodie, 13 David Kriel, 12 Harold Vorster, 11 Kurt-Lee Arendse, 10 Johan Goosen, 9 Embrose Papier, 8 Cameron Hanekom, 7 Elrigh Louw, 6 Marco van Staden, 5 Ruan Nortje (c), 4 Ruan Vermaak, 3 Wilco Louw, 2 Akker van der Merwe, 1 Gerhard Steenekamp
Replacements: 16 Johan Grobbelaar, 17 Simphiwe Matanzima, 18 Francois Klopper, 19 Reinhardt Ludwig, 20 Nizaam Carr, 21 Keagan Johannes, 22 Chris Smith, 23 Sebastian de Klerk
Benetton: 15 Rhyno Smith, 14 Ignacio Mendy, 13 Tommaso Menoncello, 12 Ignacio Brex, 11 Onisi Ratave, 10 Leonardo Marin, 9 Andy Uren, 8 Lorenzo Cannone, 7 Sebastian Negri, 6 Alessandro Izekor, 5 Eli Snyman (C), 4 Scott Scrafton, 3 Simone Ferrari, 2 Gianmarco Lucchesi, 1 Thomas Gallo
Replacements: 16 Bautista Bernasconi, 17 Destiny Aminu, 18 Tiziano Pasquali, 19 Edoardo Iachizzi, 20 Toa Halafihi, 21 Alessandro Garbisi, 22 Tomas Albornoz, 23 Marco Zanon
Venue: Loftus Versfeld, Pretoria
Kick-off: 14:00 local (13:00 BST)
Referee: Hollie Davidson (SRU)
Assistant Referees: Aimee Barrett-Theron (SARU), Cwengile Jadezweni (SARU)
TMO: Mike Adamson (SRU)
Ospreys v Dragons
The teams
Ospreys: 15 Jack Walsh, 14 Luke Morgan, 13 Owen Watkin, 12 Keiran Williams, 11 Keelan Giles, 10 Dan Edwards, 9 Reuben Morgan-Williams, 8 Morgan Morris, 7 Justin Tipuric (c), 6 Jac Morgan, 5 Huw Sutton, 4 James Ratti, 3 Tom Botha, 2 Dewi Lake, 1 Nicky Smith
Replacements: 16 Sam Parry, 17 Gareth Thomas, 18 Rhys Henry, 19 Victor Sekekete, 20 Harri Deaves, 21 Luke Davies, 22 Max Nagy, 23 Tom Florence
United Rugby Championship: Multiple playoff hopes to be shattered in penultimate round
Dragons: 15 Ewan Rosser, 14 Rio Dyer, 13 Steff Hughes (c), 12 Aneurin Owen, 11 Chris Hollis, 10 Will Reed, 9 Dane Blacker, 8 Aaron Wainwright, 7 Taine Basham, 6 Harri Keddie, 5 Matthew Screech, 4 Ben Carter, 3 Chris Coleman, 2 Elliot Dee, 1 Rhodri Jones
Replacements: 16 Brodie Coghlan, 17 Rodrigo Martinez, 18 Dmitri Arhip, 19 Sean Lonsdale, 20 Ryan Woodman, 21 Morgan Lloyd, 22 Joe Westwood, 23 Sio Tomkinson
Venue: Swansea.com Stadium
Kick-off: 15:00 BST
Referee: Ben Breakspear (WRU)
Assistant Referees: Ben Connor (WRU), Jason Bessant (WRU)
TMO: Ian Davies (WRU)
Lions v Glasgow Warriors
The teams
Lions: 15 Quan Horn, 14 Rabz Maxwane, 13 Erich Cronje, 12 Marius Louw (c), 11 Edwill van der Merwe, 10 Gianni Lombard, 9 Morne van den Berg, 8 Francke Horn, 7 Emmanuel Tshituka, 6 JC Pretorius, 5 Ruan Delport, 4 Willem Alberts, 3 Asenathi Ntlabakanye, 2 PJ Botha, 1 Morgan Naude
Replacements: 16 Jaco Visagie, 17 JP Smith, 18 Ruan Dreyer, 19 Reinhard Nothnagel, 20 Ruan Venter, 21 Hanru Sirgel, 22 Sanele Nohmaba, 23 Jordan Hendrikse
Glasgow: 15 Josh McKay, 14 Kyle Steyn (C), 13 Stafford McDowall, 12 Sione Tuipulotu, 11 Kyle Rowe, 10 Tom Jordan, 9 George Horne, 8 Henco Venter, 7 Rory Darge, 6 Euan Ferrie, 5 Scott Cummings, 4 Gregor Brown, 3 Murphy Walker, 2 Angus Fraser, 1 Oli Kebble
Replacements: 16 Johnny Matthews, 17 Jamie Bhatti, 18 Zander Fagerson, 19 Max Williamson, 20 Matt Fagerson, 21 Jack Dempsey, 22 Jamie Dobie, 23 Duncan Weir
Venue: Emirates Airline Park, Johannesburg
Kick-off: 16:05 local (15:05 BST)
Referee: Craig Evans (WRU)
Assistant Referees: Morne Ferreira (SARU), Hanru Van Rooyen (SARU)
TMO: Ben Whitehouse (WRU)
Connacht v Stormers
The teams
Connacht: 15 Tiernan O’Halloran, 14 John Porch, 13 David Hawkshaw, 12 Bundee Aki, 11 Byron Ralston, 10 Jack Carty, 9 Caolin Blade, 8 Sean Jansen, 7 Shamus Hurley-Langton, 6 Cian Prendergast, 5 Darragh Murray, 4 Joe Joyce, 3 Finlay Bealham, 2 Dave Heffernan (c), 1 Peter Dooley
Replacements: 16 Dylan Tierney-Martin, 17 Jordan Duggan, 18 Jack Aungier, 19 Oisín Dowling, 20 Jarrad Butler, 21 Colm Reilly, 22 Cathal Forde, 23 Santiago Cordero
Stormers: 15 Warrick Gelant, 14 Suleiman Hartzenberg, 13 Dan du Plessis, 12 Damian Willemse, 11 Angelo Davids, 10 Manie Libbok, 9 Herschel Jantjies, 8 Hacjivah Dayimani, 7 Ben-Jason Dixon, 6 Evan Roos, 5 Ruben van Heerden, 4 Salmaan Moerat (c), 3 Frans Malherbe, 2 Joseph Dweba, 1 Brok Harris
Replacements: 16 Andre-Hugo Venter, 17 Kwenzo Blose, 18 Neethling Fouche, 19 Adre Smith, 20 Marcel Theunissen, 21 Stefan Ungerer, 22 Jean-Luc du Plessis, 23 Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu
Venue: Dexcom Stadium, Galway
Kick-off: 17:05 BST
Referee: Federico Vedovelli (FIR)
Assistant Referees: Chris Busby (IRFU), Padraic Reidy (IRFU)
TMO: Stefano Penne (FIR)
Sharks v Cardiff
The teams
Sharks: 15 Boeta Chamberlain, 14 Yaw Penxe, 13 Diego Appollis, 12 Eduan Keyter, 11 Aphiwe Dyantyi, 10 Lionel Cronje, 9 Tiaan Fourie, 8 Sikhumbuzo Notshe, 7 Simon Miller, 6 Tino Mavesere, 5 Reniel Hugo (c), 4 Corne Rahl, 3 Khwezi Mona, 2 Dylan Richardson, 1 Dian Bleuler
Replacements: 16 Dan Jooste, 17 Braam Reyneke, 18 IG Prinsloo, 19 Thomas Dyer, 20 Nick Hatton, 21 Bradley Davids, 22 Curwin Bosch, 23 Anthony Volmink
Cardiff: 15 Cameron Winnett, 14 Josh Adams, 13 Rey Lee-Lo, 12 Willis Halaholo, 11 Gabriel Hamer-Webb, 10 Ben Thomas, 9 Ellis Bevan, 8 Alun Lawrence, 7 James Botham, 6 Ben Donnell, 5 Rory Thornton, 4 Shane Lewis-Hughes, 3 Rhys Litterick, 2 Liam Belcher (c), 1 Corey Domachowski
Replacements: 16 Evan Lloyd, 17 Rhys Carré, 18 Keiron Assiratti, 19 Seb Davies, 20 Mackenzie Martin, 21 Tinus de Beer, 22 Jacob Beetham, 23 Mason Grady
Venue: Hollywoodbets Kings Park, Durban
Kick-off: 18:15 local (17:15 BST)
Referee: Frank Murphy (IRFU)
Assistant Referees: Griffin Colby (SARU), Stephen Geldenhuys (SARU)
TMO: Eoghan Cross (IRFU)
Ulster v Leinster
The teams
Ulster: 15 Ethan McIlroy, 14 Mike Lowry, 13 Will Addison, 12 Stuart McCloskey, 11 Jacob Stockdale, 10 Billy Burns, 9 John Cooney, 8 Nick Timoney, 7 David McCann, 6 Cormac Izuchukwu, 5 Alan O’Connor (c), 4 Kieran Treadwell, 3 Tom O’Toole, 2 Rob Herring, 1 Eric O’Sullivan
Replacements: 16 Tom Stewart, 17 Andy Warwick, 18 Scott Wilson, 19 Harry Sheridan, 20 Matty Rea, 21 Nathan Doak, 22 Stewart Moore, 23 Jude Postlethwaite
Leinster: 15 Hugo Keenan, 14 Tommy O’Brien, 13 Jimmy O’Brien, 12 Charlie Ngatai, 11 Rob Russell, 10 Harry Byrne, 9 Cormac Foley, 8 Jack Conan, 7 Will Connors, 6 Max Deegan, 5 Brian Deeny, 4 James Ryan (c), 3 Michael Ala’alatoa, 2 Rónan Kelleher, 1 Cian Healy
Replacements: 16 John McKee, 17 Michael Milne, 18 Thomas Clarkson, 19 Ross Molony, 20 Scott Penny, 21 Luke McGrath, 22 Sam Prendergast, 23 Ben Brownlee
Venue: Kingspan Stadium
Kick-off: 19:35 BST
Referee: Andrea Piardi (FIR)
Assistant Referees: Robbie Jenkinson (IRFU), Keane Davison (IRFU)
TMO: Leo Colgan (IRFU)
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