URC, Round Two: Predictions, teams, kick-off times, how to watch and referee appointments

Ahead of round two of the United Rugby Championship (URC), here is everything you need to know from team sheets, kick-off times, broadcast details, and more.

There’s three matches on the schedule on Friday evening as Cardiff host Zebre Parma, Benetton take on Connacht and Siya Kolisi starts for the Stormers at Edinburgh.

More Springboks return to club duty on Saturday, including Eben Etzebeth and Andre Esterhuizen for the Sharks, who face Leinster while the Bulls travel to Munster.

Check on all the URC team news, prediction and more, here.

Friday

Cardiff v Zebre Parma

Prediction: Cardiff by 18

Cardiff: 15 Jacob Beetham, 14 Harri Millard, 13 Le Roux Malan, 12 Ben Thomas, 11 Tom Bowen, 10 Callum Sheedy, 9 Johan Mulder, 8 Taine Basham, 7 James Botham, 6 Alex Mann, 5 Teddy Williams, 4 Josh McNally (c), 3 Javan Sebastian, 2 Daf Hughes, 1 Scott Sio
Replacements: 16 Tom Howe, 17 Rhys Barratt, 18 Sam Wainwright, 19 Rory Thornton, 20 Evan Lloyd, 21 Ellis Bevan, 22 Jarrod Evans, 23 Steffan Emanuel

Zebre Parma: 15 Giovanni Montemauri, 14 Mirko Belloni, 13 Giulio Bertaccini, 12 Damiano Mazza (c), 11 Simone Gesi, 10 Tommaso Allan, 9 Thomas Dominguez, 8 Davide Ruggeri, 7 Samuele Locatelli, 6 Francesco Ruffolo, 5 Leonard Krumov, 4 Matteo Canali, 3 Juan Ignacio Castellano, 2 Francisco Minervino, 1 Federico Pisani
Replacements: 16 Giovanni Quattrini, 17 Sergio Pelliccioli, 18 Matteo Barbotti, 19 Alessandro Ortombina, 20 Giacomo Ferrari, 21 Patricio Baronio Guana, 22 Marco Zanon, 23 Giacomo Da Re

Date: Friday, 2 October 2026
Venue: Cardiff Arms Park, Cardiff
Kick-off: 19.45 IRE & UK / 20.45 ITA & SA
Referee: Morné Ferreira (SARU)
Assistant Referees: Ben Connor (WRU) and Lucas Yendle (WRU)
TMO: Marius Jonker (SARU)
Broadcasters: S4C, Sky Italia, Premier Sports, SuperSport, Flo Rugby, URC.tv

Edinburgh v Stormers

Prediction: Stormers by 3

Edinburgh: 15 Piers O’Conor, 14 Malelili Satala, 13 Matt Currie (cc), 12 Kienan Higgins, 11 Geordie Gwynn, 10 James Grayson, 9 Hector Patterson, 8 Magnus Bradbury (cc), 7 Freddy Douglas, 6 Liam McConnell, 5 Glen Young, 4 Callum Hunter-Hill, 3 Ollie Blyth-Lafferty, 2 Harri Morris, 1 Pierre Schoeman
Replacements: 16 Jerry Blyth-Lafferty, 17 Alec Hepburn, 18 Paul Hill, 19 Euan McVie, 20 Tom Currie, 21 Conor McAlpine, 22 Cammy Scott, 23 Rory McHaffie

Stormers: 15 Warrick Gelant, 14 Seabelo Senatla, 13 Ruhan Nel (c), 12 Jonathan Roche, 11 Leolin Zas, 10 Yaqeen Ahmed, 9 Stefan Ungerer, 8 Hacjivah Dayimani, 7 Louw Nel, 6 Siya Kolisi, 5 JD Schickerling, 4 Riley Norton, 3 Neethling Fouché, 2 André-Hugo Venter, 1 Ntuthuko Mchunu
Replacements: 16 Vernon Paulo, 17 Vernon Matongo, 18 Sazi Sandi, 19 Connor Evans, 20 Adré Smith, 21 Wandile Mlaba, 22 Andre Warner, 23 Wandisile Simelane

Date: Friday, 2 October 2026
Venue: Hive Stadium, Edinburgh
Kick-off: 19.45 IRE & UK / 20.45 ITA & SA
Referee: Eoghan Cross (IRFU)
Assistant Referees: Jonny MacKenzie (SRU) and Ciaran Stark (SRU)
TMO: Paul Haycock (IRFU)
Broadcasters: Premier Sports, SuperSport, Flo Rugby, URC.tv

Benetton v Connacht

Prediction: Connacht by 5

Benetton: 15 Matt Gallagher, 14 Louis Lynagh, 13 Paolo Odogwu, 12 Leonardo Marin, 11 Onisi Ratave, 10 Jacob Umaga, 9 Alessandro Garbisi, 8 Riccardo Favretto, 7 Michele Lamaro (c), 6 Giulio Marini, 5 Federico Ruzza, 4 Niccolò Cannone, 3 Simone Ferrari, 2 Bautista Bernasconi, 1 Matias Medrano
Replacements: 16 Siua Maile, 17 Mirco Spagnolo, 18 Tiziano Pasquali, 19 Sootala Fa’aso’o, 20 Antony Miranda, 21 Andy Uren, 22 Jean Smith, 23 Ignacio Mendy

Connacht: 15 Sam Gilbert, 14 Finn Treacy, 13 John Devine, 12 Cathal Forde, 11 Mack Hansen, 10 Ciarán Frawley, 9 Caolin Blade, 8 Sean Jansen, 7 Seán O’Brien, 6 Cian Prendergast (c), 5 Josh Murphy, 4 Darragh Murray, 3 Finlay Bealham, 2 Matthew Victory, 1 Francois van Wyk
Replacements: 16 Eoin de Buitléar, 17 Billy Bohan, 18 Sam Illo, 19 Niall Murray, 20 Paul Boyle, 21 Colm Reilly, 22 Josh Ioane, 23 Shane Jennings

Date: Friday, 2 October 2026
Venue: Stadio Monigo, Treviso
Kick-off: 19.45 IRE & UK / 20.45 ITA & SA
Referee: Hollie Davidson (SRU)
Assistant Referees: Franco Rosella (FIR) and Manuel Bottino (FIR)
TMO: Sam Grove-White (SRU)
Broadcasters: Sky Italia, Premier Sports, TG4, SuperSport, Flo Rugby, URC.tv

Bulls star ‘100%’ on return to Springboks as ‘best’ good enough for Rassie Erasmus’ team

Saturday

Lions v Ospreys

Prediction: Lions by 12

Lions: 15 Boeta Chamberlain, 14 Kelly Mpeku, 13 Ethan Adams, 12 Richard Kriel, 11 Erich Cronje, 10 Chris Smith, 9 Nico Steyn, 8 Francke Horn (c), 7 Siba Qoma, 6 JC Pretorius, 5 Ruan Delport, 4 Etienne Oosthuizen, 3 Sebastian Lombard, 2 PJ Botha, 1 Boan Venter
Replacements: 16 Morne Brandon, 17 SJ Kotze, 18 RF Schoeman, 19 Hyron Andrews, 20 Siba Mahashe, 21 Dylan Sjoblom, 22 Morne van den Berg, 23 Quan Horn

Ospreys: 15 Iestyn Hopkins 14 Tom Rogers, 13 Evardi Boshoff, 12 Keiran Williams, 11 Keelan Giles (cc), 10 Dan Edwards, 9 Kieran Hardy, 8 Morgan Morse, 7 Harri Deaves, 6 Liam Wright (cc), 5 Ryan Smith, 4 Huw Sutton, 3 Rhys Henry, 2 Efan Daniel, 1 Gareth Thomas
Replacements: 16 Lewis Lloyd, 17 Cam Jones, 18 Ben Warren, 19 Rhys Davies, 20 Ross Moriarty, 21 Reuben Morgan-Williams, 22 Lawson Creighton, 23 Luke Morgan

Date: Saturday, 3 October 2026
Venue: 10bet Ellis Park, Johannesburg
Kick-off: 12.45 IRE & UK / 13.45 ITA & SA
Referee: Filippo Russo (FIR)
Assistant Referees: Griffin Colby (SARU) and Dylen November (SARU)
TMO: Gianluca Gnecchi (FIR)
Broadcasters: SuperSport, Premier Sports, Flo Rugby, URC.tv

Dragons v Scarlets

Prediction: Dragons by 2

Dragons: 15 Huw Anderson, 14 Rio Dyer, 13 Fine Inisi, 12 Aneurin Owen, 11 Anzelo Tuitavuki, 10 Tinus de Beer, 9 Rhodri Williams, 8 Harri Keddie, 7 Thomas Young, 6 Shane Lewis-Hughes, 5 Ben Carter (c), 4 Seb Davies, 3 Robert Hunt, 2 Elliot Dee, 1 Rodrigo Martinez
Replacements: 16 Brodie Coghlan, 17 Rhodri Jones, 18 Dillon Lewis, 19 Ryan Woodman, 20 Harry Beddall, 21 Che Hope, 22 Jac Lloyd, 23 Fetuli Paea

Scarlets: 15 Blair Murray, 14 Ellis Mee, 13 Joe Roberts, 12 Eddie James, 11 Macs Page, 10 Sam Costelow, 9 Dane Blacker, 8 Osian Williams, 7 Dan Davis, 6 Josh Macleod (c), 5 Sam Lousi, 4 Alex Groves, 3 Harri O’Connor, 2 Ryan Elias, 1 Kemsley Mathias
Replacements: 16 John McKee, 17 Sam O’Connor, 18 Gabe Hawley, 19 Will Evans, 20 Tristan Davies, 21 Gareth Davies, 22 Joe Hawkins, 23 Johnny Williams

Date: Saturday, 3 October 2026
Venue: Rodney Parade, Newport
Kick-off: 1515.00 IRE & UK / 16.00 ITA & SA
Referee: Adam Jones (WRU)
Assistant Referees: Ben Whitehouse (WRU) and Marcus Caudle (WRU)
TMO: Keith David (WRU)
Broadcasters: Premier Sports, SuperSport, Flo Rugby, URC.tv

Sharks v Leinster

Prediction: Sharks by 5

Sharks: 15 Luan Giliomee, 14 Edwill van der Merwe, 13 Jurenzo Julius, 12 Andre Esterhuizen (c), 11 Lili Bester, 10 Vusi Moyo, 9 Jaden Hendrikse, 8 Nick Hatton, 7 Manu Tshituka, 6 Phepsi Buthelezi, 5 Darrien Landsberg, 4 Jason Jenkins, 3 Vincent Koch, 2 Esethu Mnebelele, 1 Thomas du Toit
Replacements: 16 Ethan Bester, 17 Ox Nche, 18 Hanro Jacobs, 19 Eben Etzebeth, 20 Matt Romao, 21 Ivan van Zyl, 22 Zekhethelo Siyaya, 23 Ethan Hooker

Leinster: 15 Todd Lawlor, 14 Tommy O’Brien, 13 Hugh Cooney, 12 Robbie Henshaw, 11 Andrew Osborne, 10 Caspar Gabriel, 9 Fintan Gunne, 8 Josh Ericson, 7 Josh van der Flier, 6 Ryan Baird, 5 Alan Spicer, 4 Conor O’Tighearnaigh, 3 Thomas Clarkson, 2 Rónan Kelleher (c), 1 Andrew Porter
Replacements: 16 Gus McCarthy, 17 Alex Usanov, 18 Niall Smyth, 19 Brian Deeny, 20 Ciaran Mangan, 21 Oliver Coffey, 22 Sam Prendergast, 23 Hugo McLaughlin

Date: Saturday, 3 October 2026
Venue: Hollywoodbets Kings Park, Durban
Kick-off: 17.30 IRE & UK / 18.30 ITA & SA
Referee: Craig Evans (WRU)
Assistant Referees: Hanru van Rooyen (SARU) and Jonathan Lottering (SARU)
TMO: Ben Breakspear (WRU)
Broadcasters: SuperSport, Premier Sports, Flo Rugby, URC.tv

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Glasgow Warriors v Ulster

Prediction: Glasgow by 14

Glasgow: 15 Josh McKay, 14 Kyle Rowe, 13 Stafford McDowall, 12 Sione Tuipulotu, 11 Jamie Dobie, 10 Dan Lancaster, 9 George Horne, 8 Matt Fagerson, 7 Angus Fraser, 6 Ally Miller, 5 Max Williamson, 4 Gregor Brown, 3 Fin Richardson, 2 Gregor Hiddleston, 1 Patrick Schickerling
Replacements: 16 Seb Stephen, 17 Nathan McBeth, 18 Sam Talakai, 19 Scott Cummings, 20 Rory Darge, 21 Macenzzie Duncan, 22 Callum Reidy, 23 Bayley Kuenzle

Ulster: 15 Jacob Stockdale, 14 Chay Mullins, 13 Ethan McIlroy, 12 Jamie Benson, 11 Zac Ward, 10 Jack Murphy, 9 Matthew Devine, 8 Bryn Ward, 7 David McCann, 6 James McKillop, 5 Eli Snyman, 4 Cormac Izuchukwu, 3 Keynan Knox, 2 Tom Stewart (c), 1 Eric O’Sullivan
Replacements: 16 Henry Walker, 17 Tom McAllister, 18 Eduardo Bello, 19 Ben Donnell, 20 James McNabney, 21 Nathan Doak, 22 Jake Flannery, 23 Juarno Augustus

Date: Saturday, 3 October 2026
Venue: Scotstoun Stadium, Glasgow
Kick-off: 17.30 IRE & UK / 18.30 ITA & SA
Referee: Christopher Allison (SARU)
Assistant Referees: Jonny MacKenzie (SRU) and Sam O’Neil (SRU)
TMO: Marius Jonker (SARU)
Broadcasters: Premier Sports, SuperSport, Flo Rugby, URC.tv

Munster v Bulls

Prediction: Munster by 1

Munster: 15 Shane Daly, 14 Diarmuid Kilgallen, 13 Seán O’Brien, 12 Dan Kelly, 11 Shay McCarthy, 10 Charlie O’Shea, 9 Craig Casey (c), 8 Brian Gleeson, 7 John Hodnett, 6 Seán Edogbo, 5 Fineen Wycherley, 4 Tom Ahern, 3 Jack Aungier, 2 Marnus van der Merwe, 1 Michael Milne
Replacements: 16 Kieran Brookes, 17 Jeremy Loughman, 18 Ronan Foxe, 19 Evan O’Connell, 20 Gavin Coombes, 21 Ben O’Donovan, 22 JJ Hanrahan, 23 Alex Kendellen

Bulls: 15 Hakeem Kunene, 14 Sebastian de Klerk, 13 Stedman Gans, 12 Stravino Jacobs, 11 Thaakir Abrahams, 10 Curwin Bosch, 9 Zak Burger, 8 Jeandre Rudolph, 7 Hanro Liebenberg, 6 Marcell Coetzee (c), 5 Reinhardt Ludwig, 4 Ruan Vermaak, 3 Francois Klopper, 2 Juann Else, 1 Alu Tshakweni
Replacements: 16 Janco Uys, 17 Sti Sithole, 18 Khutha Mchunu, 19 JF van Heerden, 20 Nizaam Carr, 21 Paul de Wet, 22 Cheswill Jooste, 23 Willie le Roux

Date: Saturday, 3 October 2026
Venue: Thomond Park, Limerick
Kick-off: 19.45 IRE & UK / 20.45 ITA & SA
Referee: Federico Vedovelli (FIR)
Assistant Referees: Andrew Cole (IRFU) and Andrew Fogarty (IRFU)
TMO: Stefano Roscini (FIR)
Broadcasters: TG4, Premier Sports, SuperSport, Flo Rugby, URC.tv

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