Munster vs Ulster

In the game of the last round, Munster were pipped at the post by the Scarlets. They were undone partly by some shaky defending, but ultimately by an injury time penalty. They will be doubly determined to put those memories to bed against a strong Ulster outfit. Returning from the international scene, Simon Zebo and Donnacha Ryan are in the squad and new boy Mario Sagario is named as a replacement. For Ulster, Darren Cave and Paddy Jackson start and Peter Nelson comes in at full back. In the pack, Andy Warwick takes his place at loosehead. Chris Henry is likely to make an appearance from the bench at some point, as is Dan Tuohy who has successfully followed the return to play protocols following concussion.

The last time these two teams met they played out a 23-23 draw, and on the previous two occasions the games were won by fewer than three points. Thomond Park is a notoriously difficult venue for visiting teams, but perhaps holds less fear for the other Irish provinces than it does for some. History suggests there will be little in it again on Friday evening, but the wheels are unlikely to come off the Munster bus two weeks in a row. Munster by 4.

Scarlets vs Newport Gwent Dragons

In this all Welsh clash, the Scarlets will be looking to continue their fantastic start to the season; following their win over Munster, they are now the only team with a 100% record. Wayne Pivac has had to make a couple of changes, however, with Hadleigh Parkes replacing the injured Gareth Owen at centre, and winger Harry Robinson making a welcome return to the starting line-up having been out of action since May. 18 year old Jacob Cowley is named on the bench and if he comes on he will join his dad Regan King in the first father and son combination in a Pro12 match. Meanwhile at the Dragons, everyone will be wanting to put the Faletau saga behind them – he is named by Lyn Jones in the starting team. Elsewhere, Jason Tovey moves to full-back following an impressive 14 point haul against Treviso, and Dorian Jones plays at fly-half with Charlie Davies his half back partner.

The Dragons, who won against Treviso last week, are desperate to find some consistency (something that has largely eluded them over the last couple of years), whilst the Scarlets will be keen to capitalise on their strong start to the season. The game is unlikely to be as one-sided as the current league table might suggest, but the home side should still run out comfortable winners. Scarlets by 8.

Zebre vs Cardiff Blues

Zebre will have had a massive lift from last week’s win over Edinburgh, and with home advantage again there is an opportunity for the Italians to record back to back wins. Understandably they make only two changes with Giulio Bisegni at outside centre and Luke Burgess at scrum-half starting. Cardiff’s form has been erratic partly because they have played their last four games away from home. Last week against Ulster a Josh Turnbull yellow card was costly, and they lost their way in the match either side of half-time. To their credit, the Blues battled back from 24-9 to earn a bonus point which looked very unlikely after 50 minutes. They are once again on the road this week, although this time they are playing the team they beat 61-13 in Round 1. Head Coach Danny Wilson makes four changes; USA Eagle Blaine Scully makes his debut and Tom James returns on the other wing. In the pack Taufa’ao Filise will record his 199th appearance for the Blues in the front-row while Ellis Jenkins wears the No seven shirt.

Having beaten Zebre so comprehensively last time out, it is difficult to see the result being reversed in Italy. The Blues need to win this game to kick start their season and are unlikely to pass up the opportunity. Cardiff Blues by 6.

Connacht vs Edinburgh

Connacht won a hard fought battle against the Ospreys last week, and are proving incredibly difficult to beat this season, perhaps benefitting from not losing too many players to the World Cup. Edinburgh’s unbeaten start came off the rails in unexpected fashion away to Zebre, and there can be few places more difficult than the Sportsground in Galway to try to get back on track. The Connacht backline is unchanged from last week while Tom McCartney, Andrew Browne, and John Muldoon all return to the pack. Returning international Nathan White is named on the bench. Edinburgh ring 7 changes, the most notable being Sam Hildago-Clyne starting at scrum-half and the 18 year old Blair Kinghorn making his first professional start at full-back.

It will be an attritional battle and the breakdown will be key to determining the outcome. It is probably in the backs, however, that Connacht possess more threat than Edinburgh and if the Scots fail to dominate up front then the men from Galway are likely to have sufficient ball to create the line breaks needed to win the game. Connacht by 6.

Glasgow Warriors vs Ospreys

Both teams welcome back key players ahead of this clash. The Warriors contrived to lose away to Leinster last Friday night despite being the better side for much of the game. For all their possession and quick phase play they did not have a cutting edge. They were clearly missing the impact of some of the World Cup players, and one suspects are really going to miss the recently departed Niko Matawalu and DTH van der Merwe. Gregor Townsend has demanded a more disciplined performance this week as ultimately this let them down. With Dan Biggar returning for the Ospreys, giving away penalties in their own half will be suicidal. Returning to the Warriors XV are internationals Tommy Seymour, Peter Horne, Gordon Reid, Leone Nakarawa and Sila Puafisi (who makes his debut for the club).

The Ospreys have only won one of five, and if they want to qualify for the play-offs they cannot afford to lose too many more games. They too are bringing strength back into their starting line up with Dan Evans, Dan Biggar, Paul James, Aaron Jarvis, Dan Lydiate and James King all in the XV. Coach Steve Tandy has said there’s been some straight talking in training during the week, and this probably reflects the fact that the Ospreys are too good a side to be occupying 10th place. It should be a cracker at Scotstoun where home advantage may be critical. Glasgow by 3.

Benetton Treviso vs Leinster

The Italians make five changes including bringing in Sam Christie and Andrea Pratichetti at 12 and 13, Edoardo Gori at scrum-half, Teofilo Paulo in the second row and, perhaps most importantly, their captain Alessandro Zanni on the flank. The Leinster youngsters recorded a confidence-boosting win over reigning champions Glasgow last week where the result was probably better than the performance. Some of the less experienced players showed up really well; Garry Ringrose and Luke McGrath in particular. Leo Cullen includes Dave Kearney and Luke Fitzgerald, whilst Eoin Reddan and Johnny Sexton start together at half-back. The Leinster faithful will be delighted to see Sexton back in the blue and white again following his spell at Racing. In the forwards it is a completely new front row as Jack McGrath, Sean Cronin and Tadhg Furlong all start for the first time this season. New Zealander and former Blues second row Hayden Triggs makes his debut in the second row and Jordi Murphy comes in at openside.

Treviso battled hard last week and picked up their fourth bonus point in defeat. Whilst they are not winning games yet, they are sticking in them right up to the final whistle; it is surely only a matter of time before this translates in to their first win. The Italians have only beaten Leinster once in their previous 12 meetings and don’t expect that trend to be reversed at the weekend. Leinster by 7.

By Keith Mackenzie
Follow Keith on Twitter: @Keith_Mack7