URC round five: Predictions, teams, kick-off times, how to watch and referee appointments
Leinster's RG Snyman and Ospreys' Ross Moriarty.
Round five of the United Rugby Championship (URC) kicks off on Friday at Scotstoun Stadium with Glasgow Warriors and the Bulls going toe-to-toe.
The action resumes on Saturday in Johannesburg with the Lions hosting Ulster before the Sharks and Scarlets face off in Durban.
Leinster will be keen to bounce back from their defeat to Munster as they host Zebre Parma at the Aviva Stadium. At the same time, Benetton face off against the unbeaten Stormers and the Dragons host Ospreys.
The weekend’s Irish Inter-pro derby pits Munster and Connacht against one another at Thomond Park, with Cardiff and Edinburgh kicking off at the same time at Arms Park.
Here are the weekend’s URC teamsheets and our predictions.
Glasgow Warriors v Bulls
Prediction: Glasgow by 10
Glasgow Warriors: 15 Josh McKay, 14 Kyle Steyn (c), 13 Stafford McDowall, 12 Sione Tuipulotu, 11 Kyle Rowe, 10 Adam Hastings, 9 George Horne, 8 Jack Dempsey, 7 Matt Fagerson, 6 Gregor Brown, 5 Scott Cummings, 4 Max Williamson, 3 Murphy Walker, 2 Johnny Matthews, 1 Jamie Bhatti
Replacements: 16 Seb Stephen, 17 Nathan McBeth, 18 Sam Talakai, 19 Alex Samuel, 20 Alex Craig, 21 Euan Ferrie, 22 Ben Afshar, 23 Dan Lancaster
Bulls: 15 Willie le Roux, 14 Sebastian de Klerk, 13 David Kriel, 12 Harold Vorster, 11 Stravino Jacobs, 10 Keagan Johannes, 9 Embrose Papier, 8 Jeandre Rudolph, 7 Reinhardt Ludwig, 6 Marcell Coetzee, 5 Ruan Nortje (c), 4 Cobus Wiese, 3 Mornay Smith, 2 Johan Grobbelaar, 1 Gerhard Steenekamp
Replacements: 16 Juann Else, 17 Etienne Janneke, 18 Francois Klopper, 19 JJ Theron, 20 Nama Xaba, 21 Paul de Wet, 22 Stedman Gans, 23 Kurt-Lee Arendse
Venue: Scotstoun Stadium, Glasgow
Date: Friday, October 24
Kick-off: 19.45 IRE & UK / 20.45 ITA & SA
Referee: Craig Evans (WRU, 71st league game)
Assistant Referees: Mike Adamson (SRU), Ru Campbell (SRU)
TMO: Keith David (WRU)
Live on: Premier Sports, SuperSport, Flo Rugby & URC.tv
Glasgow Warriors v Bulls: Prediction, teams, kick-off time, how to watch and referee
Lions v Ulster Rugby
Prediction: Lions by 5
Lions: 15 Quan Horn, 14 Eduan Keyter, 13 Henco van Wyk, 12 Bronson Mills, 11 Angelo Davids, 10 Chris Smith, 9 Nico Steyn, 8 Francke Horn (c), 7 Ruan Venter, 6 Jarrod Cairns, 5 Reinhard Nothnagel, 4 Etienne Oosthuizen, 3 Asenathi Ntlabakanye, 2 Franco Marais, 1 SJ Kotze
Replacements: 16 Morne Brandon, 17 RF Schoeman, 18 Conraad van Vuuren, 19 Darrien Landsberg, 20 Renzo du Plessis, 21 Layton Horn, 22 Gianni Lombard, 23 Kelly Mpeku
Ulster: 15 Michael Lowry, 14 Robert Baloucoune, 13 James Hume, 12 Jude Postlethwaite, 11 Zac Ward, 10 Jack Murphy, 9 Nathan Doak, 8 Juarno Augustus, 7 Tom Stewart, 6 David McCann, 5 Joe Hopes, 4 Harry Sheridan, 3 Tom O’Toole, 2 Rob Herring (c), 1 Sam Crean
Replacements: 16 James McCormick, 17 Callum Reid, 18 Scott Wilson, 19 Matthew Dalton, 20 Bryn Ward, 21 Conor McKee, 22 Jake Flannery, 23 Werner Kok
Venue: Ellis Park, Johannesburg
Date: Saturday, October 25
Kick-off: 12.45 IRE & UK / 13.45 ITA & SA
Referee: Ben Connor (WRU, 5th league game)
Assistant Referees: Christopher Allison (SARU), JD Jadezweni (SARU)
TMO: Ben Whitehouse (WRU)
Live on: SuperSport, Premier Sports, TG4, Flo Rugby & URC.tv
Sharks v Scarlets
Prediction: Sharks by 7
Sharks: 15 Jordan Hendrikse, 14 Edwill van der Merwe, 13 Lukhanyo Am, 12 Andre Esterhuizen, 11 Ethan Hooker, 10 Siya Masuku, 9 Grant Williams, 8 Emmanuel Tshituka, 7 Vincent Tshituka, 6 Siya Kolisi, 5 Marvin Orie, 4 Eben Etzebeth (c), 3 Vincent Koch, 2 Bongi Mbonambi, 1 Ox Nche
Replacements: 16 Fez Mbatha, 17 Cameron Dawson, 18 Lee-Marvin Mazibuko, 19 Bathobele Hlekani, 20 Phepsi Buthelezi, 21 Jaden Hendrikse, 22 Jean Smith, 23 Jurenzo Julius
Scarlets: 15 Blair Murray, 14 Tom Rogers, 13 Joe Roberts, 12 Johnny Williams (c), 11 Ellis Mee, 10 Dane Blacker, 9 Archie Hughes, 8 Taine Plumtree, 7 Dan Davis, 6 Sam Lousi, 5 Jake Ball, 4 Harvey Cuckson, 3 Archer Holz, 2 Marnus van der Merwe, 1 Kemsley Mathias
Replacements: 16 Kirby Myhill, 17 Alec Hepburn, 18 Henry Thomas, 19 Alex Groves, 20 Jarrod Taylor, 21 Archie Hughes, 22 Joe Hawkins, 23 Ioan Nicholas
Venue: Kings Park, Durban
Date: Saturday, October 25
Kick-off: 15.00 IRE & UK / 16.00 ITA & SA
Referee: Sam Grove-White (SRU, 55th league game)
Assistant Referees: Griffin Colby (SARU), Aimee Barrett-Theron (SARU)
TMO: Eoghan Cross (IRFU)
Live on: SuperSport, TG4, Premier Sports, Flo Rugby & URC.tv
Winless Sharks double down on Springboks-heavy team with Eben Etzebeth twist for Scarlets showdown
Leinster Rugby v Zebre Parma
Prediction: Leinster by at least 10
Leinster: 15 Hugo McLaughlin, 14 Joshua Kenny, 13 Hugh Cooney, 12 Charlie Tector, 11 Andrew Osborne, 10 Harry Byrne, 9 Luke McGrath (c), 8 James Culhane, 7 Scott Penny, 6 Max Deegan, 5 Diarmuid Mangan, 4 Brian Deeny, 3 Rabah Slimani, 2 John McKee, 1 Jerry Cahir
Replacements: 16 Bobby Sheehan, 17 Alex Usanov, 18 Andrew Sparrow, 19 RG Snyman, 20 Alex Soroka, 21 Will Connors, 22 Fintan Gunne, 23 Caspar Gabriel
Zebre: 15 Lorenzo Pani, 14 Mirko Belloni, 13 Giulio Bertaccini, 12 Marco Zanon, 11 Albert Einstein Batista, 10 Giacomo Da Re, 9 Thomas Dominguez, 8 David Odiase, 7 Samuele Locatelli, 6 Giacomo Ferrari, 5 Leonard Krumov (c), 4 Franco Carrera, 3 Matteo Nocera, 2 Giovanni Quattrini, 1 Muhamed Hasa
Replacements: 16 Tommaso Di Bartolomeo, 17 Paolo Buonfiglio, 18 Marcos Gallorini, 19 Giacomo Milano, 20 Giovanni Licata, 21 Migael Prinsloo, 22 Martin Roger Farias, 23 Luca Morisi
Venue: Aviva Stadium, Dublin
Date: Saturday, October 25
Kick-off: 17.30 IRE & UK / 18.30 ITA & SA
Referee: Ian Kenny (SRU, 7th league game)
Assistant Referees: Stuart Gaffikin (IRFU), Andrew Fogarty (IRFU)
TMO: Colin Brett (SRU)
Live on: Premier Sports, SuperSport, Flo Rugby & URC.tv
Benetton v Stormers
Prediction: Stormers by 3
Benetton: 15 Matt Gallagher, 14 Louis Lynagh, 13 Tommaso Menoncello, 12 Leonardo Marin, 11 Ignacio Mendy, 10 Jacob Umaga, 9 Andy Uren, 8 Lorenzo Cannone, 7 Michele Lamaro (c), 6 Sebastian Negri, 5 Riccardo Favretto (c), 4 Niccolò Cannone, 3 Simone Ferrari, 2 Siua Maile, 1 Thomas Gallo
Replacements: 16 Bautista Bernasconi, 17 Nahuel Tetaz Chaparro, 18 Giosué Zilocchi, 19 Federico Ruzza, 20 Manuel Zuliani, 21 So’otala Fa’aso’o, 22 Alessandro Garbisi, 23 Filippo Drago
Stormers: 15 Warrick Gelant, 14 Seabelo Senatla, 13 Ruhan Nel (c), 12 Damian Willemse, 11 Leolin Zas, 10 Jurie Matthee, 9 Dewaldt Duvenage, 8 Evan Roos, 7 Ben-Jason Dixon, 6 Paul de Villiers, 5 JD Schickerling, 4 Salmaan Moerat, 3 Sazi Sandi, 2 André-Hugo Venter, 1 Vernon Matongo
Replacements: 16 JJ Kotze, 17 Oli Kebble, 18 Zachary Porthen, 19 Adré Smith, 20 Ruben van Heerden, 21 Ruan Ackerman, 22 Cobus Reinach, 23 Wandisile Simelane
Venue: Stadio Monigo, Treviso
Date: Saturday, October 25
Kick-off: 17.30 IRE & UK / 18.30 ITA & SA
Referee: Hollie Davidson (SRU, 23rd league game)
Assistant Referees: Gianluca Gnecchi (FIR), Luca Bisetto (FIR)
TMO: Andrew McMenemy (SRU)
Live on: Sky Italia, Premier Sports, SuperSport, Flo Rugby & URC.tv
Dragons RFC v Ospreys
Prediction: Ospreys by 5
Dragons: 15 Angus O’Brien (c), 14 Fine Inisi, 13 Joe Westwood, 12 Aneurin Owen, 12 Harri Ackerman, 11 Huw Anderson, 10 Tinus de Beer, 9 Rhodri Williams, 8 Aaron Wainwright, 7 Thomas Young, 6 Ryan Woodman, 5 Ben Carter (c), 4 Matthew Screech, 3 Chris Coleman, 2 Brodie Coghlan, 1 Wyn Jones
Replacements: 16 Oli Burrows, 17 Rodrigo Martinez, 18 Dillon Lewis, 19 Shane Lewis Hughes, 20 Harry Beddall, 21 Niall Armstrong, 22 Cai Evans, 23 David Richards
Ospreys: 15 Jack Walsh, 14 Dan Kasende, 13 Phil Cokanasiga, 12 Keiran Williams, 11 Iestyn Hopkins, 10 Dan Edwards, 9 Reuben Morgan-Williams, 8 Ross Moriarty, 7 Harri Deaves, 6 Huw Sutton, 5 James Fender, 4 Ryan Smith, 3 Tom Botha, 2 Dewi Lake (c), 1 Gareth Thomas
Replacements: 16 Lewis Lloyd, 17 Garyn Phillips, 18 Ben Warren, 19 Rhys Davies, 20 Jac Morgan, 21 Luke Davies, 22 Evardi Boshoff, 23 Max Nagy
Venue: Rodney Parade, Newport
Date: Saturday, October 25
Kick-off: 17.30 IRE & UK / 18.30 ITA & SA
Referee: Ben Breakspear (WRU, 13th league game)
Assistant Referees: Adam Jones (WRU), Amber Stamp-Dunstan (WRU)
TMO: Aled Griffiths (WRU)
Live on: Premier Sports, SuperSport, Flo Rugby & URC.tv
Munster Rugby v Connacht Rugby
Prediction: Munster by 10
Munster: 15 Shane Daly, 14 Diarmuid Kilgallen, 13 Dan Kelly, 12 Alex Nankivell, 11 Thaakir Abrahams, 10 JJ Hanrahan, 9 Ethan Coughlan, 8 Gavin Coombes, 7 John Hodnett, 6 Jack O’Donoghue (c), 5 Fineen Wycherley, 4 Jean Kleyn, 3 John Ryan, 2 Lee Barron, 1 Michael Milne
Replacements: 16 Niall Scannell, 17 Jeremy Loughman, 18 Ronan Foxe, 19 Evan O’Connell, 20 Ruadhan Quinn, 21 Jake O’Riordan, 22 Tony Butler, 23 Shay McCarthy
Connacht: 15 Harry West, 14 Byron Ralson, 13 Hugh Gavin, 12 Cathal Forde, 11 Finn Treacy, 10 Josh Ioane, 9 Ben Murphy, 8 Sean Jansen, 7 Paul Boyle (c), 6 Josh Murphy, 5 Darragh Murray, 4 Joe Joyce, 3 Sam Illo, 2 Dave Heffernan, 1 Jordan Duggan
Replacements: 16 Dylan Tierney-Martin, 17 Peter Dooley, 18 Fiachna Barrett, 19 Niall Murray, 20 David O’Connor, 21 Matthew Devine, 22 Sean Naughton, 23 Seán O’Brien
Venue: Thomond Park, Limerick
Date: Saturday, October 25
Kick-off: 19.45 IRE & UK / 20.45 ITA & SA
Referee: Andrea Piardi (FIR, 57th league game)
Assistant Referees: Peter Martin (IRFU), Chris Lough (IRFU)
TMO: Matteo Liperini (FIR)
Live on: TG4, Premier Sports, SuperSport, Flo Rugby & URC.tv
Cardiff Rugby v Edinburgh Rugby
Prediction: Cardiff by 7
Cardiff: 15 Jacob Beetham, 14 Josh Adams, 13 Harri Millard, 12 Ben Thomas, 11 Tom Bowen, 10 Ioan Lloyd, 9 Johan Mulder, 8 Taulupe Faletau, 7 Taine Basham, 6 Alex Mann, 5 George Nott, 4 Josh McNally, 3 Javan Sebastin, 2 Liam Belcher (c), 1 Danny Southworth
Replacements: 16 Daf Hughes, 17 Corey Domachowski, 18 Keiron Assiratti, 19 Ben Donnell, 20 Alun Lawrence, 21 Dan Thomas, 22 Aled Davies, 23 Callum Sheedy
Edinburgh: 15 Wes Goosen, 14 Ross McCann, 13 Piers O’Conor, 12 James Lang, 11 Lewis Wells, 10 Cammy Scott, 9 Charlie Shiel, 8 Magnus Bradbury (c), 7 Dylan Richardson, 6 Liam McConnell, 5 Grant Gilchrist, 4 Marshall Sykes, 3 D’arcy Rae, 2 Ewan Ashman, 1 Pierre Schoeman
Replacements: 16 Paddy Harrison, 17 Boan Venter, 18 Paul Hill, 19 Callum Hunter-Hill, 20 Luke Crosbie, 21 Ben Vellacott, 22 Ross Thompson, 23 Matt Davidson
Venue: Cardiff Arms Park, Cardiff
Date: Saturday, October 25
Kick-off: 19.45 IRE & UK / 20.45 ITA & SA
Referee: Andrew Brace (IRFU, 110th league game)
Assistant Referees: Craig Evans (WRU), Carwyn Sion (WRU)
TMO: Colin Stanley (IRFU)
Live on: S4C, Premier Sports, SuperSport, Flo Rugby & URC.tv
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