Munster handed welcome fitness boost for Leinster and RG Snyman showdown while Ospreys favourite hits 100 against Springbok-heavy Bulls

David Skippers
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James Ryan and Alex Nankivell image.jpg

Leinster lock James Ryan and Munster centre Alex Nankivell.

The 2024/25 United Rugby Championship season continues this weekend with a full round of action that sees one game being played on Friday, six on Saturday and a final fixture on Sunday.

All eyes will be on Croke Park where the heavyweights of the Irish game – Leinster and Munster – face off in their highly anticipated derby.

For Leinster, Ireland lock James Ryan returns to action, after missing last week’s win over Benetton, and will pack down in the second-row alongside Springboks Rugby World Cup winner and former Munster star RG Snyman.

Meanwhile, Alex Nankivell returns from a shoulder injury for the Munstermen having missed their last two games after a fine performance against Connacht in their season opener.

Check on the team news for the weekend’s URC fixtures, here.

Friday

Glasgow Warriors v Zebre Parma

The teams

Glasgow: 15 Kyle Rowe, 14 Jamie Dobie, 13 Huw Jones, 12 Stafford McDowall (c), 11 Facundo Cordero, 10 Adam Hastings, 9 George Horne, 8 Jack Dempsey, 7 Rory Darge, 6 Euan Ferrie, 5 Scott Cummings, 4 Gregor Brown, 3 Zander Fagerson, 2 Johnny Matthews, 1 Jamie Bhatti
Replacements: 16 Grant Stewart, 17 Nathan McBeth, 18 Patrick Schickerling, 19 Alex Samuel, 20 Max Williamson, 21 Henco Venter, 22 Ben Afshar, 23 Tom Jordan

Zebre: 15 Geronimo Prisciantelli, 14 Jacopo Trulla, 13 Fetuli Paea, 12 Scott Gregory, 11 Simone Gesi, 10 Giacomo Da Re, 9 Gonzalo Garcia, 8 Giovanni Licata (c), 7 Luca Andreani, 6 Giacomo Ferrari, 5 Andrea Zambonin, 4 Leonard Krumov, 3 Matteo Nocera, 2 Giampietro Ribaldi, 1 Luca Rizzoli
Replacements: 16 Luca Bigi, 17 Samuele Taddei, 18 Ion Neculai, 19 Matteo Canali, 20 Iacopo Bianchi, 21 Alessandro Fusco, 22 Damiano Mazza, 23 Ben Cambriani

Venue: Scotstoun
Kick-off: 19:35 BST (18:35 GMT)
Referee: Griffin Colby (SARU)
Assistant Referees: Mike Adamson (SRU), Chelsea Gillespie (SRU)
TMO: Morne Ferreira (SARU)

Saturday

Benetton v Sharks

The teams

Benetton: 15 Rhyno Smith, 14 Ignacio Mendy, 13 Tommaso Menoncello, 12 Ignacio Brex, 11 Paolo Odogwu, 10 Jacob Umaga, 9 Alessandro Garbisi, 8 Lorenzo Cannone, 7 Michele Lamaro (c), 6 Alessandro Izekor, 5 Federico Ruzza, 4 Niccolò Cannone, 3 Enzo Avaca, 2 Siua Maile, 1 Mirco Spagnolo
Replacements: 16 Bautista Bernasconi, 17 Destiny Aminu, 18 Marcos Gallorini, 19 Riccardo Favretto, 20 Eli Snyman, 21 Sebastian Negri, 22 Andy Uren, 23 Leonardo Marin

Sharks: 15 Jordan Hendrikse, 14 Eduan Keyter, 13 Jurenzo Julius, 12 Andre Esterhuizen, 11 Ethan Hooker, 10 Siya Masuku, 9 Jaden Hendrikse, 8 Phepsi Buthelezi, 7 Vincent Tshituka (c), 6 James Venter, 5 Gerbrandt Grobler, 4 Jason Jenkins, 3 Ruan Dreyer, 2 Fez Mbatha, 1 Trevor Nyakane
Replacements: 16 Dylan Richardson, 17 Ntuthuko Mchunu, 18 Hanro Jacobs, 19 Corne’ Rahl, 20 Emmanuel Tshituka, 21 Bradley Davids, 22 Lionel Cronje, 23 Francois Venter

Venue: Stadio Monigo, Treviso
Kick-off: 16:00 local (15:00 BST, 14:00)
Referee: Sam Grove-White (SRU)
Assistant Referees: Federico Vedovelli (FIR), Alex Frasson (FIR)
TMO: Colin Brett (SRU)

Cardiff v Scarlets

The teams

Cardiff:  15 Cam Winnett, 14 Mason Grady, 13 Rey Lee-Lo, 12 Ben Thomas (c), 11 Harri Millard, 10 Tinus de Beer, 9 Ellis Bevan, 8 Dan Thomas, 8 Alun Lawrence, 6 Ben Donnell, 5 Teddy Williams, 4 Josh McNally, 3 Keiron Assiratti, 2 Efan Daniel, 1 Ed Byrne
Replacements: 16 Daf Hughes, 17 Danny Southworth, 18 Litterick, 19 Mackenzie Martin, 20 James Botham, 21 Aled Davies, 22 Callum Sheedy, 23 Gabriel Hamer-Webb

Scarlets: 15 Ioan Nicholas, 14 Tom Rogers, 13 Johnny Williams, 12 Eddie James, 11 Blair Murray, 10 Ioan Lloyd, 9 Gareth Davies, 8 Taine Plumtree, 7 Dan Davis, 6 Josh Macleod (c), 5 Max Douglas, 4 Sam Lousi, 3 Henry Thomas, 2 Marnus van der Merwe, 1 Kemsley Mathias
Replacements: 16 Ryan Elias, 17 Alec Hepburn, 18 Sam Wainwright, 19 Alex Craig, 20 Carwyn Tuipulotu, 21 Efan Jones, 22 Sam Costelow, 23 Macs Page

Venue: Cardiff Arms Park
Kick-off: 15:00 BST (14:00 GMT)
Referee: Craig Evans (WRU)
Assistant Referees: Mike English (WRU), Amber Stamp-Dunstan (WRU)
TMO: Keith David (RU)

Edinburgh v Stormers

The teams

Edinburgh: 15 Wes Goosen, 14 Darcy Graham, 13 Mosese Tuipulotu, 12 Matt Scott, 11 Duhan van der Merwe, 10 Ross Thompson, 9 Ali Price, 8 Magnus Bradbury, 7 Ben Muncaster, 6 Jamie Ritchie , 5 Grant Gilchrist (c), 4 Jamie Hodgson, 3 Paul Hill, 2 Patrick Harrison, 1 Pierre Schoeman
Replacements: 16 Harri Morris, 17 Boan Venter, 18 D’arcy Rae, 19 Marshall Sykes, 20 Luke Crosbie, 21 Ben Vellacott, 22 Cammy Scott, 23 Matt Currie

Stormers: 15 Warrick Gelant, 14 Angelo Davids, 13 Ruhan Nel, 12 Dan du Plessis (c), 11 Leolin Zas, 10 Damian Willemse, 9 Paul de Wet, 8 Keke Morabe, 7 Ben-Jason Dixon, 6 Dave Ewers, 5 Ruben van Heerden, 4 JD Schickerling, 3 Neethling Fouche, 2 Andre-Hugo Venter, 1 Brok Harris
Replacements: 16 JJ Kotze, 17 Sti Sithole, 18 Sazi Sandi, 19 Adre Smith, 20 Marcel Theunissen, 21 Willie Engelbrecht, 22 Stefan Ungerer, 23 Wandisile Simelane

Venue: Hive Stadium
Kick-off: 17:15 BST (16:15 GMT)
Referee: Craig Evans (WRU)
Assistant Referees: Hollie Davidson (SRU), Rob McDowell (SRU)
TMO: Tom Spurrier (WRU)

Leinster v Munster to smash attendance record as ‘incredible rivalry’ resumes at Croke Park

Leinster v Munster

The teams

Leinster: 15 Hugo Keenan, 14 Liam Turner, 13 Garry Ringrose, 12 Jamie Osborne, 11 James Lowe, 10 Ciarán Frawley, 9 Jamison Gibson-Park, 8 Caelan Doris (c), 7 Josh van der Flier, 6 Jack Conan, 5 James Ryan, 4 RG Snyman, 3 Tadhg Furlong, 2 Lee Barron, 1 Andrew Porter
Replacements: 16 Gus McCarthy, 17 Cian Healy, 18 Thomas Clarkson, 19 Ryan Baird, 20 Max Deegan, 21 Luke McGrath, 22 Ross Byrne, 23 Harry Byrne

Munster: 15 Mike Haley, 14 Calvin Nash, 13 Tom Farrell, 12 Alex Nankivell, 11 Seán O’Brien, 10 Jack Crowley, 9 Craig Casey, 8 Gavin Coombes, 7 John Hodnett, 6 Jack O’Donoghue, 5 Tadhg Beirne (c), 4 Jean Kleyn, 3 Stephen Archer, 2 Niall Scannell, 1 Jeremy Loughman
Replacements: 16 Diarmuid Barron, 17 Kieran Ryan, 18 John Ryan, 19 Tom Ahern, 20 Ruadhán Quinn, 21 Conor Murray, 22 Tony Butler, 23 Shay McCarthy

Venue: Croke Park
Kick-off: 17:45 BST (16:45 GMT)
Referee: Chris Busby (IRFU)
Assistant Referees: Peter Martin (IRFU), Keane Davison (IRFU)
TMO: Mark Patton (IRFU)

Ospreys v Bulls

The teams

Ospreys: 15 Max Nagy, 14 Iestyn Hopkins, 13 Owen Watkin, 12 Keiran Williams, 11 Ryan Conbeer, 10 Dan Edwards, 9 Reuben Morgan-Williams, 8 Morgan Morris, 7 Justin Tipuric, 6 Jac Morgan (c), 5 Adam Beard, 4 James Ratti, 3 Tom Botha, 2 Dewi Lake, 1 Gareth Thomas
Replacements: 16 Sam Parry, 17 Garyn Phillips, 18 Ben Warren, 19 Lewis Jones, 20 Will Greatbanks, 21 Kieran Hardy, 22 Luke Scully, 23 Jack Walsh

Bulls: 15 Willie le Roux, 14 Sebastian de Klerk, 13 Canan Moodie, 12 David Kriel, 11 Kurt-Lee Arendse, 10 Boeta Chamberlain, 9 Embrose Papier, 8 Elrigh Louw, 7 Reinhardt Ludwig, 6 Marcell Coetzee, 5 Ruan Nortje (c), 4 Ruan Vermaak, 3 Wilco Louw, 2 Johan Grobbelaar, 1 Gerhard Steenekamp
Replacements: 16 Akker van der Merwe, 17 Alulutho Tshakweni, 18 Francois Klopper, 19 Cobus Wiese, 20 Cameron Hanekom, 21 Keagan Johannes, 22 Stedman Gans, 23 Aphiwe Dyantyi

Venue: Swansea.com Stadium
Kick-off: 19:35 BST (18:35 GMT)
Referee: Eoghan Cross (IRFU)
Assistant Referees: Ben Breakspear (WRU), Ben Connor (WRU)
TMO: Colin Stanley (IRFU)

Ulster v Connacht

The teams

Ulster: 15 Ethan McIlroy, 14 Werner Kok, 13 Stewart Moore, 12 Jude Postlethwaite, 11 Jacob Stockdale, 10 Aidan Morgan, 9 John Cooney, 8 Nick Timoney, 7 Sean Reffell, 6 David McCann, 5 Kieran Treadwell, 4 Iain Henderson (c), 3 Tom O’Toole, 2 John Andrew, 1 Andrew Warwick
Replacements: 16 James McCormick, 17 Callum Reid, 18 Corrie Barrett, 19 Alan O’Connor, 20 Marcus Rea, 21 Nathan Doak, 22 Carson, 23 Lowry

Connacht: 15 Santiago Cordero, 14 Mack Hansen, 13 Piers O’Conor, 12 Bundee Aki, 11 Shayne Bolton, 10 Josh Ioane, 9 Ben Murphy, 8 Paul Boyle, 7 Sean O’Brien, 6 Cian Prendergast (c), 5 Josh Murphy, 4 Joe Joyce, 3 Finlay Bealham, 2 Dave Heffernan, 1 Denis Buckley
Replacements: 16 Dylan Tierney-Martin, 17 Peter Dooley, 18 Temi Lasisi, 19 Oisín Dowling, 20 David O’Connor, 21 Caolin Blade, 22 Cathal Forde, 23 Conor Oliver

Venue: Kingspan Stadium
Kick-off: 20:00 BST (19:00 GMT)
Referee: Andrew Brace (IRFU)
Assistant Referees: Andrew Cole (IRFU), Robbie Jenkinson (IRFU)
TMO: Olly Hodges (IRFU)

Sunday

Dragons v Lions

The teams

Dragons: 15 Angus O’Brien, 14 Rio Dyer, 13 Joe Westwood, 12 Aneurin Owen, 11 Jared Rosser, 10 Lloyd Evans, 9 Rhodri Williams, 8 Taine Basham, 7 Harri Keddie, 6 Shane Lewis-Hughes, 5 Matthew Screech, 4 Ben Carter (c), 3 Leon Brown, 2 Brodie Coghlan, 1 Rodrigo Martinez
Replacements: 16 Oli Burrows, 17 Cameron Jones, 18 Chris Coleman, 19 Ryan Woodman, 20 Dan Lydiate, 21 Dane Blacker, 22 Will Reed, 23 Ewan Rosser

Lions: 15 Quan Horn, 14 Rabz Maxwane, 13 Erich Cronje, 12 Rynhardt Jonker, 11 Edwill van der Merwe, 10 Nico Steyn, 9 Morne van den Berg, 8 Francke Horn (c), 7 Jarod Cairns, 6 JC Pretorius, 5 Darrien Landsberg, 4 Reinhard Nothnagel, 3 Asenathi Ntlabakanye, 2 Franco Marais, 1 Juan Schoeman
Replacements: 16 PJ Botha, 17 Heiko Pohlmann, 18 Conraad Van Vuuren, 19 Ruben Schoeman, 20 Renzo Du Plessis, 21 Sanele Nohamba, 22 Marius Louw, 23 Henco van Wyk

Venue: Rodney Parade
Kick-off: 14:30 BST (13:30 GMT)
Referee: Fillipo Russo (FIR)
Assistant Referees: Adam Jones (WRU), Rhys Jones (WRU)
TMO: Stefano Penne (FIR)

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