URC round 17: Predictions, teams, kick-off times, how to watch and referee appointments
Sam Prendergast starts for Leinster while Duhan van der Merwe returns for Edinburgh.
The United Rugby Championship (URC) returns this weekend with Round 17 seeing three matches take place on Friday night with the remaining five scheduled on Saturday.
Check on all the team news, our predictions, how to watch and more below.
Friday
Glasgow Warriors v Cardiff
Prediction: Glasgow by 14
Glasgow Warriors: 15 Josh McKay, 14 Kyle Steyn (c), 13 Stafford McDowall, 12 Sione Tuipulotu, 11 Kyle Rowe, 10 Dan Lancaster, 9 George Horne, 8 Jack Dempsey, 7 Rory Darge, 6 Matt Fagerson, 5 Alex Samuel, 4 Ally Miller, 3 Zander Fagerson, 2 Johnny Matthews, 1 Jamie Bhatti
Replacements: 16 Gregor Hiddleston, 17 Patrick Schickerling, 18 Sam Talakai, 19 Jare Oguntibeju, 20 Macenzzie Duncan, 21 Sione Vailanu, 22 Ben Afshar, 23 Ollie Smith
Cardiff: 15 Cam Winnett, 14 Jacob Beetham, 13 Josh Adams, 12 Ben Thomas, 11 Tom Bowen, 10 Callum Sheedy, 9 Johan Mulder, 8 Taine Basham, 7 Dan Thomas, 6 James Botham, 5 Rory Thornton, 4 Josh McNally, 3 Keiron Assiratti, 2 Liam Belcher (c), 1 Rhys Barratt
Replacements: 16 Evan Lloyd, 17 Danny Southworth, 18 Sam Wainwright, 19 George Nott, 20 Alun Lawrence, 21 Ellis Bevan, 22 Rory Jennings, 23 Ioan Lloyd
Venue: Scotstoun Stadium (Glasgow)
Kick-off: 19:45 IRE & UK / 20:45 ITA & SA
Referee: Eoghan Cross (IRFU, 39th game)
Assistant Referees: Ru Campbell (SRU), David Sutherland (SRU)
TMO: Colin Stanley (IRFU)
How to watch: Premier Sports, BBC Wales, SuperSport, URC.tv and FloRugby
Ulster v Stormers
Prediction: Stormers by 2
Ulster: 15 Michael Lowry, 14 Werner Kok, 14 Ethan McIlroy, 13 Jude Postlethwaite, 11 Zac Ward, 10 Jack Murphy, 9 Nathan Doak, 8 Juarno Augustus, 7 Nick Timoney, 6 Cormac Izuchukwu, 5 Charlie Irvine, 4 Iain Henderson (c), 3 Tom O’Toole, 2 James McCormick, 1 Angus Bell
Replacements: 16 Tom Stewart, 17 Eric O’Sullivan, 18 Scott Wilson, 19 Harry Sheridan, 20 Bryn Ward, 21 Conor McKee, 22 Jake Flannery, 23 Wilhelm De Klerk
Stormers: 15 Warrick Gelant, 14 Wandisile Simelane, 13 Dan du Plessis, 12 Damian Willemse, 11 Leolin Zas, 10 Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu, 9 Imad Khan, 8 Evan Roos, 7 Ben-Jason Dixon, 6 Deon Fourie (c), 5 Ruben van Heerden, 4 Adré Smith, 3 Sazi Sandi, 2 André-Hugo Venter, 1 Ntuthuko Mchunu
Replacements: 16 Paul de Villiers, 17 Oli Kebble, 18 Zachary Porthen, 19 Connor Evans, 20 Hacjivah Dayimani, 21 Keke Morabe, 22 Stefan Ungerer, 23 Jurie Matthee
Venue: Affidea Stadium (Belfast)
Kick-off: 19:45 IRE & UK / 20:45 ITA & SA
Referee: Andrea Piardi (FIR, 60th game)
Assistant Referees: Padraic Reidy (IRFU), Jack MacNeice (IRFU)
TMO: Matteo Liperini (FIR)
How to watch: Premier Sports, SuperSport, URC.tv and FloRugby
Stormers copy Springboks’ hooker ploy amid injury crisis as Evan Roos equals legend’s record
Saturday
Bulls v Zebre Parma
Prediction: Bulls by 25
Bulls: 15 Kurt-Lee Arendse, 14 Cheswill Jooste, 13 Canan Moodie, 12 Harold Vorster, 11 Sergeal Petersen, 10 Willie le Roux, 9 Paul de Wet, 8 Cameron Hanekom, 7 Jeandre Rudolph, 6 Marcell Coetzee (c), 5 JF van Heerden, 4 Ruan Vermaak, 3 Wilco Louw, 2 Marco van Staden, 1 Jan Hendrik Wessels
Replacements: 16 Johan Grobbelaar, 17 Gerhard Steenekamp, 18 Francois Klopper, 19 Cobus Wiese, 20 Mpilo Gumede, 21 Embrose Papier, 22 Handre Pollard, 23 Stedman Gans
Zebre Parma: 15 Mirko Belloni, 14 Jacopo Trulla, 13 Marco Zanon, 12 Enrico Lucchin, 11 Simone Gesi, 10 Martin Roger Farias, 9 Thomas Dominguez, 8 Giovanni Licata (c), 7 Davide Odiase, 6 Alessandro Ortombina, 5 Leonard Krumov, 4 Franco Carrera, 3 Matteo Nocera, 2 Giampietro Ribaldi, 1 Paolo Buonfiglio
Replacements: 16 Giovanni Quattrini, 17 Luca Franceschetto, 18 Ion Neculai, 19 Matteo Canali, 20 Bautista Stavile, 21 Samuele Locatelli, 22 Alessandro Fusco, 23 Migael Prinsloo
Venue: Loftus Versfeld Stadium (Pretoria)
Kick-off: 12:45 IRE & UK / 13:45 ITA & SA
Referee: Ben Whitehouse (WRU, 115th game)
Assistant Referees: Griffin Colby (SARU), Dylen November (SARU)
TMO: Adam Jones (WRU)
How to watch: SuperSport, Premier Sports, URC.tv and FloRugby
Sharks v Benetton
Prediction: Sharks by 5
Sharks: 15 Jaco Williams, 14 Edwill van der Merwe, 13 Jurenzo Julius, 12 Andre Esterhuizen (c), 11 Makazole Mapimpi, 10 Zekhethelo Siyaya, 9 Bradley Davids, 8 Emmanuel Tshituka, 7 Vincent Tshituka, 6 Siya Kolisi, 5 Emile van Heerden, 4 Jason Jenkins, 3 Vincent Koch, 2 Eduan Swart, 1 Ox Nche
Replacements: 16 Fez Mbatha, 17 Phatu Ganyane, 18 Hanro Jacobs, 19 Corne Rahl, 20 Nicholas Hatton, 21 Ross Braude, 22 Jean Smith, 23 Litelihle Bester
Benetton: 15 Rhyno Smith, 14 Louis Lynagh, 13 Tommaso Menoncello, 12 Leonardo Marin, 11 Ignacio Mendy, 10 Jacob Umaga, 9 Alessandro Garbisi, 8 Lorenzo Cannone, 7 Alessandro Izekor, 6 Riccardo Favretto, 5 Giulio Marini, 4 Niccolò Cannone (c), 3 Marcos Gallorini, 2 Bautista Bernasconi, 1 Destiny Aminu
Replacements: 16 Nicholas Gasperini, 17 Ivan Nemer, 18 Tiziano Pasquali, 19 Mattia Midena, 20 So’otala Fa’aso’o, 21 Federico Ruzza, 22 Andy Uren, 23 Federico Zanandrea
Venue: Hollywoodbets Kings Park (Durban)
Kick-off: 15:00 IRE & UK / 16:00 ITA & SA
Referee: Ben Breakspear (WRU, 20th game)
Assistant Referees: Hanru van Rooyen (SARU), Stephan Geldenhuys (SARU)
TMO: Craig Evans (WRU)
How to watch: SuperSport, Premier Sports, URC.tv and FloRugby
Sharks gamble on teen sensation’s positional switch amid fly-half rumours while Siya Kolisi starts
Ospreys v Scarlets
Prediction: Ospreys by 3
Ospreys: 15 Jack Walsh, 14 Iestyn Hopkins, 13 Owen Watkin, 12 Keiran Williams, 11 Luke Morgan, 10 Dan Edwards, 9 Kieran Hardy, 8 Morgan Morris, 7 Jac Morgan (c), 6 James Ratti, 5 Ryan Smith, 4 Rhys Davies, 3 Tom Botha, 2 Sam Parry, 1 Steffan Thomas
Replacements: 16 Lewis Lloyd, 17 Garyn Phillips, 18 Ben Warren, 19 Huw Sutton, 20 Ross Moriarty, 21 Reuben Morgan-Williams, 22 Keelan Giles, 23 Evardi Boshoff
Scarlets: 15 Blair Murray, 14 Tom Rogers, 13 Joe Roberts, 12 Eddie James, 11 Macs Page, 10 Joe Hawkins, 9 Dane Blacker, 8 Fletcher Anderson, 7 Josh Macleod (c, 6 Taine Plumtree, 5 Max Douglas, 4 Jac Price, 3 Henry Thomas, 2 Ryan Elias, 1 Kemsley Mathias
Replacements: 16 Harry Thomas, 17 Josh Morse, 18 Harri O’Connor, 19 Dan Davis, 20 Jarrod Taylor, 21 Archie Hughes, 22 Carwyn Leggatt-Jones, 23 Ioan Jones
Venue: Electric Brewery Field (Bridgend)
Kick-off: 17:30 IRE & UK / 18:30 ITA & SA
Referee: Ben Connor (WRU, 8th game)
Assistant Referees: Carwyn Sion (WRU), Gareth Newman (WRU)
TMO: Keith David (WRU)
How to watch: S4C, Premier Sports, SuperSport, URC.tv and FloRugby
Leinster v Lions
Prediction: Leinster by 10
Leinster: 15 Ciarán Frawley, 14 Joshua Kenny, 13 Rieko Ioane, 12 Jamie Osborne, 11 Jimmy O’Brien, 10 Sam Prendergast, 9 Luke McGrath, 8 James Culhane, 7 Will Connors, 6 Max Deegan, 5 James Ryan (c), 4 Brian Deeny, 3 Thomas Clarkson, 2 John McKee, 1 Ed Byrne
Replacements: 16 Dan Sheehan, 17 Andrew Porter, 18 Rabah Slimani, 19 Diarmuid Mangan, 20 Scott Penny, 21 Fintan Gunne, 22 Hugh Cooney, 23 Hugo Keenan
Lions: 15 Quan Horn, 14 Erich Cronje, 13 Henco van Wyk, 12 Richard Kriel, 11 Angelo Davids, 10 Chris Smith, 9 Morné van den Berg, 8 Francke Horn (c), 7 Ruan Venter, 6 Siba Mahashe, 5 Reinhard Nothnagel, 4 Etienne Oosthuizen, 3 Asenathi Ntlabakanye, 2 PJ Botha, 1 SJ Kotze
Replacements: 16 Franco Marais, 17 Eddie Davids, 18 Sebastian Lombard, 19 Darrien Landsberg, 20 Batho Hlekani, 21 JC Pretorius, 22 Nico Steyn, 23 Kelly Mpeku
Venue: Aviva Stadium (Dublin)
Kick-off: 17:30 IRE & UK / 18:30 ITA & SA
Referee: Hollie Davidson (SRU, 28th game)
Assistant Referees: Keane Davison (IRFU), Suart Gaffikin (IRFU)
TMO: Andrew McMenemy (SRU)
How to watch: Premier Sports, SuperSport, URC.tv and FloRugby
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Dragons v Edinburgh
Prediction: Dragons by 5
Dragons: 15 Angus O’Brien (cc), 14 Jared Rosser, 13 Fine Inisi, 12 Aneurin Owen, 11 Rio Dyer, 10 Tinus de Beer, 9 Rhodri Williams, 8 Aaron Wainwright, 7 Thomas Young, 6 Harrison Keddie, 5 Ben Carter (cc), 4 Seb Davies, 3 Dillon Lewis, 2 Brodie Coghlan, 1 Rodrigo Martinez
Replacements: 16 Elliot Dee, 17 Rhodri Jones, 18 Chris Coleman, 19 Matthew Screech, 20 Ryan Woodman, 21 Niall Armstrong, 22 Harri Ackerman, 23 Huw Anderson
Edinburgh: 15 Harry Paterson, 14 Darcy Graham, 13 Mosese Tuipulotu, 12 Findlay Thomson, 11 Duhan van der Merwe, 10 Ross Thompson, 9 Hector Patterson, 8 Tom Currie, 7 Freddy Douglas, 6 Glen Young, 5 Grant Gilchrist (c), 4 Callum Hunter-Hill, 3 Ollie Blyth-Lafferty, 2 Ewan Ashman, 1 Pierre Schoeman
Replacements: 16 Dylan Richardson, 17 Boan Venter, 18 Paul Hill, 19 Marshall Sykes, 20 Liam McConnell, 21 Magnus Bradbury, 22 Charlie Shiel, 23 Piers O’Conor
Venue: Rodney Parade (Newport)
Kick-off: 19:45 IRE & UK / 20:45 ITA & SA
Referee: Filippo Russo (FIR, 9th game)
Assistant Referees: Lucas Yendle (WRU), Marcus Caudle (WRU)
TMO: Stefano Roscini (FIR)
How to watch: Premier Sports, SuperSport, URC.tv and FloRugby
Connacht v Munster
Prediction: Connacht by 3
Connacht: 15 Sam Gilbert, 14 Shane Jennings, 13 Harry West, 12 Bundee Aki, 11 Shayne Bolton, 10 Josh Ioane, 9 Ben Murphy, 8 Sean Jansen, 7 Shamus Hurley-Langton, 6 Cian Prendergast (c), 5 Josh Murphy, 4 Darragh Murray, 3 Sam Illo, 2 Dylan Tierney-Martin, 1 Billy Bohan
Replacements: 16 Eoin de Buitléar, 17 Peter Dooley, 18 Finlay Bealham, 19 Joe Joyce, 20 Paul Boyle, 21 Matthew Devine, 22 Jack Carty, 23 Seán Naughton
Munster: 15 Mike Haley, 14 Shane Daly, 13 Alex Nankivell, 12 Dan Kelly, 11 Andrew Smith, 10 JJ Hanrahan, 9 Craig Casey (c), 8 Gavin Coombes, 7 John Hodnett, 6 Tom Ahern, 5 Fineen Wycherley, 4 Edwin Edogbo, 3 Michael Ala’alatoa, 2 Diarmuid Barron, 1 Jeremy Loughman
Replacements: 16 Lee Barron, 17 Josh Wycherley, 18 Conor Bartley, 19 Jack O’Donoghue, 20 Brian Gleeson, 21 Ben O’Donovan, 22 Seán O’Brien, 23 Alex Kendellen
Venue: Dexcom Stadium (Galway)
Kick-off: 19:45 IRE & UK / 20:45 ITA & SA
Referee: Peter Martin (IRFU, 15th game)
Assistant Referees: Andrew Brace (IRFU), Sam Holt (IRFU)
TMO: Mark Patton (IRFU)
How to watch: TG4, Premier Sports, SuperSport, URC.tv and FloRugby