Weekend European Rugby preview

JOE looks ahead to the Munster Leinster and Ulster’s clashes in the Heineken Cup this weekend as well as Connacht’s Amlin Challenge Cup encounter with Bayonne.

By Conor Heneghan

The fixtures

Amlin Challenge Cup

Connacht v Bayonne Friday 7pm

Heineken Cup

Munster v Toulon Saturday 3.30pm (Live on Sky Sports 1)

Saracens v Leinster Saturday 5.45pm (Live on Sky Sports 1)

Biarritz v Ulster Sunday 4pm (Live on Sky Sports Red Button)

The previews

Munster v Toulon

It is a testament to Munster that with the very last play of last weekend’s encounter against London Irish, they rescued a bonus point – a point that could prove vital when a ridiculously difficult Pool Three comes down for decision in January.

Munster are one of only a handful of sides that would have rescued something where it didn’t seem possible - they have a reputation of being able to do so based on their displays over the last few seasons.

They also have a reputation as being formidable opponents on their home turf – 41 wins in 42 Heineken Cup games in Thomond Park speaks for itself – and Toulon will have their work cut out getting anything at all out of Saturday’s game.

The French side had a decent victory over Ospreys last weekend, a win inspired by the kicking of Jonny Wilkinson, who contributed 14 points with the boot.

The indications are that Wilkinson will be left out this weekend in favour of Felipe Contepomi, a man with something of a chequered past against the southern province.  The Limerick faithful will relish the opportunity to put the Argentinean under pressure and history suggests that he can buckle when the heat is on.

Tony McGahan’s side are a little light in midfield following Sam Tuitupou’s suspension but the likes of Paul Warwick, Johne Murphy and Keith Earls (above) are versatile performers and they should be able to cope.

Teams:

Munster: P Warwick, D Howlett, K Earls, J Murphy, Denis Hurley, R O'Gara, P Stringer, W du Preez, D Varley, T Buckley, D O'Callaghan, M O'Driscoll, A Quinlan, D Wallace, D Leamy [capt].

Replacements: J Flannery, M Horan, J Hayes, D Ryan, J Coughlan, N Ronan, D Williams, S Deasy

Toulon: C Marienval, P Sackey, M Kefu, F Auelua, R Wulf, F Contepomi, P Mignoni, L Emmanuelli, J Genevois, C Hayman, J Suta, K Chesney, G Smith, J El Abd, J van Niekerk [capt].

Replacements: M Ivaldi, S Taumoepeau, D Kubriashvili, O Missoup, G Lovobalavu, J Wilkinson, L Magnaval, D Schofield

Prediction: Munster by a comfortable enough margin, although four tries for a bonus point might be beyond them.

Saracens v Leinster

Leinster seemed to blow the cobwebs off what had been a disappointing start to the season against Racing Metro last weekend. Some of their play - particularly the build up to Rob Kearney’s try - was vintage Leinster and, barring a hairy twenty minutes or so in the second half, Joe Schmidt’s side overcame their star-studded French opponents without too much difficulty.

This Saturday’s encounter is likely to be a far tighter affair as Sarries look to recover from a 15-point reverse against Clermont Auvergne last weekend. In fairness to Brendan Venter’s side, Clermont looked very impressive in victory, but it means that Saracens really have to win against the Blues if they are to have any hope of qualifying from the pool.

Joe Schmidt has expressed his belief that the away bonus point wins that Leinster acquired in last year’s competition simply aren’t possible this time around given the difficulty of the pool, and like Munster last weekend, he and his side will probably be happy enough coming away from London with a bonus point.

Shane Horgan will replace his injured buddy Brian O'Driscoll against Saracens

Even though Brian O’Driscoll’s absence will be crucial, Shane Horgan is not a bad replacement and they should be good enough to come away from the unfamiliar surroundings of Wembley Stadium with something to show for their efforts.

Teams:

Saracens: A Goode, D Strettle, A Powell, B Barritt, C Wyles, D Hougaard, R Wigglesworth, D Carstens, S Brits, C Nieto, S Borthwick [capt], M Botha, J Burger, A Saull, E Joubert.

Replacements: J George, M Parr, R Skuse, H Smith, K Brown, N de Kock, K Ratuvou, N Cato

Leinster: R Kearney, S Horgan, L Fitzgerald, G D'Arcy, I Nacewa, J Sexton, E Reddan, C Healy, R Strauss, M Ross, N Hines, D Toner, S O'Brien, S Jennings, J Heaslip [capt].

Replacements: J Harris-Wright, H Van Der Merwe, S Shawe, L Cullen, D Ryan, I Boss, F McFadden, E O'Malley

Prediction: Leinster to gain a bonus point in a Saracens victory.

Biarritz v Ulster

Ulster’s excellent start to the season continued against Aironi last weekend, but Brian McLaughlin’s side will be well and truly tested for probably the first time in the campaign in Biarritz on Sunday.

McLaughlin has admitted recently that although the results have been excellent, the performances haven’t quite been up to the level required and although it is great to be getting results while not playing well, anything less than 100% on Sunday will have them heading back for Belfast with their tails between their legs.

Ulster’s South African contingent seem to gelling in well and in Ruan Pienaar, they have a player who could light up the competition this season. Biarritz are hardened Heineken  Cup competitors and will pay little heed of reputations. They already have an away win victory (against Bath last weekend) and a bonus point win on Sunday, or a win while depriving Ulster of a bonus point will go a long way to helping the French side top the pool.

Although the Heineken cup semi-final was played in San Sebastien last season and this weekend’s game is in Biarritz, Munster will testify as to just how difficult it is in this neck of the woods and Ulster may be in for a tough time this weekend.

Teams:

Biarritz: D Haylett-Petty, T Ngwenya, C Gimenez, M Bond, I Balshaw, J Peyrelongue, D Yachvili, E Coetzee, B August, C Johnstone, J Thion, E Lund, M Lund, I Harinordoquy [capt], R Lakafia.

Replacements: R Terrain, S Marconnet, A Barozzi, M Carizza, B Guyot, D Traille, A Mignardi, I Bolakoro

Ulster: D McIlwaine, A Trimble, I Whitten, P Wallace, S Danielli, I Humphreys, R Pienaar, T Court, R Best [capt], B Botha, J Muller, T Barker, P Wannenburg, S Ferris, R Diack.

Replacements: A Kyriacou, P McAllister, B Young, D Tuohy, C Henry, P Marshall, N Spence, A D'Arcy

Prediction: Ulster to come home from France empty-handed

Connacht v Bayonne

Friday evening’s clash with Bayonne has suddenly become a must-win encounter for Eric Elwood’s side after their shock defeat to minnows Cavalieri Prato in Italy last weekend. By all accounts, the Westerners were extremely poor and it is a shame that one bad display threatens to ruin their season after what has been a hugely encouraging start.

There is still plenty of time for Connacht to make an impression on the competition this season and should they get a good result against Bayonne at the Sportsground tonight, then things will start to look a lot more rosy all of a sudden.

Bayonne will not be easy opponents and enjoyed a hard-fought win over a decent Harlequins outfit last weekend. Connacht are an entirely different proposition at the Sportsground, however, and with front-liners like Gavin Duffy, Frank Murphy and Seán Cronin restored to the starting line-up, a win should be well within their grasp.

Teams:

Connacht: G Duffy, D Fanning, N Ta'auso, K Mathews, F Carr, I Keatley, F Murphy, B Wilkinson, S Cronin, J Hagan, M Swift, M McCarthy, J O'Connor, R Ofisa, J Muldoon [capt].

Replacements: A Flavin, B Fa'amausili, R Loughney, B Upton, A Browne, C Willis, M Nikora, T Nathan

Bayonne: P Elhorga, Y Huget, T Lacroix, S Gerber, J Peyras Loustalet, S Fauque, J Audy, P Lafond, A Heguy, T Lea'aetoa, C Treloar, T Flavell, J Puricelli [capt], R Martin, M Baget

Replacements: D Roumieu, F Da Ros, D Avril, R Linde, A Boutaty, C Garcia, G Ziegler, J Pietersen

Prediction: Connacht to win and prevent Bayonne from gaining a bonus point while doing so.