The fourth round of matches in the Guinness PRO12 take place this weekend with three matches scheduled for Friday night, two for Saturday and one for Sunday.

In one of the fixtures on Friday night second placed Glasgow Warriors play hosts to third placed Connacht at Scotstoun Stadium. Both teams have won all three of their PRO12 matches this season, with Glasgow Warriors one point ahead Connacht thanks to the try scoring bonus point they picked up away from home against Newport Gwent Dragons last weekend.

The only other team who has won all three of their PRO12 matches this season are the Ospreys who top the table. They face an away trip to Ireland to face 5th placed Munster on Saturday evening.

We take a look at the upcoming matches in Round 4 and the latest log.

pro12rugby

Fixtures:

Round 4
Fri 26 Sep	19:35		Edinburgh	vs	Scarlets	BT Murrayfield	ALBA/BBCW
Fri 26 Sep	19:35		Glasgow Warriors	vs	Connacht	Scotstoun Stadium
Fri 26 Sep	19:35		Leinster	vs	Cardiff Blues	RDS Arena	TG4
Sat 27 Sep	16:00		Zebre	vs	Ulster	Stadio XXV Aprile	BBCNI
Sat 27 Sep	18:30		Munster	vs	Ospreys	Thomond Park	Sky
Sun 28 Sep	16:00		Newport Gwent Dragons	vs	Benetton Treviso	Rodney Parade	S4C

 

Preview:

Edinburgh vs Scarlets

Edinburgh have failed to back up their opening-day victory at Munster in each of their last two games – but Andries Strauss insists panic has not set in ahead of their clash with Scarlets.

Alan Solomons’ men will be boosted by the return of captain Ross Ford and fellow Scotland international Grant Gilchrist as they search for their second win in nine Guinness PRO12 matches.

The backs have also been mixed up with Greig Tonks starting at full-back and Sam Beard emerging from the bench to start at outside centre.

Firepower may be exactly what Edinburgh need as they have not topped 14 points in each of their last five league matches, and are looking to win at the first time at Murrayfield since December.

One person to have made an impact this season is Strauss – who captained the club in their sobering 62-13 defeat to Ospreys last time out – and he is determined to wipe the slate clean.

“I think the worst thing to do is shout and scream,” said the centre.

“Everyone knows what the mistakes were. I think it’s quite clear that we didn’t pitch up physically, showed very little character out there, and the boys are as disappointed as the fans would be.

“The most important things for us as a team at the moment is to have a look at it and make sure we stick together as a side and remain positive.

“We’ve got a home game against Scarlets on the weekend and we have to make sure we’re ready for that.”

Edinburgh could well find solace in the visit of Scarlets, as the Welsh region have won just once on their PRO12 travels since last November.

Wayne Pivac and company have had the steadiest of starts this year – won one, drawn one, lost one – but will also reinforce their starting XV with prop Samson Lee, who is available after suspension.

Rob McCusker also packs down at No.8 while the only change to the backline is Aled Davies at scrum-half.

Unlike Edinburgh, Scarlets are on something of an upwards curve after racking up 43 points against Benetton Treviso last week – and Pivac expects the team to continue to build on a disappointing round two loss to Leinster.

“What we have learned is if, for whatever reason, you are a couple of per cent off mentally, sides are making you pay,” said Pivac.

“The attitude you bring to the game is important.

“The challenge for all the players is to take the same attitude we had on the weekend against Treviso into the game at Edinburgh. We want to perform well on the road as well as at home.”

 

Venue: BT Murrayfield, 19:35 BST
Live on BBC ALBA / BBC WALES
Referee: John Lacey (IRFU, 38th competition game)
Assistant Referees: Neil Paterson, Stephen Hart (both SRU)
Citing Commissioner: John Kirk (SRU)
TMO: David Changleng (SRU)

 

Glasgow Warriors vs Connacht

After beating champions Leinster last week, Connacht face last season’s runners-up Glasgow Warriors on Friday night – and head coach Pat Lam believes they can spring another surprise.

Both sides have made 100 per cent starts to the Guinness PRO12 season with Kieran Marmion’s magical solo try helping Connacht come from behind to beat Leinster 10-9.

Lam’s side have made their best start to a new season since 2003-04 and will be looking for a second successive win in Scotland having beaten Edinburgh in round two.

Connacht’s last win against the Warriors came in February 2011 while they have only won once in Glasgow since 2003 and Lam has made five changes to his starting XV for their latest attempt to improve that record.

Michael Swift, the league’s highest capped player, makes his first appearance of the season while Marmion is rested with new signing Ian Porter replacing him at scrum-half.

And while he considers his side underdogs, Lam believes there is a growing confidence in their play.

“It’s not something that has clicked overnight,” Lam told the Galway Advertiser.

“It is something we have been building on. I always admired the fight and spirit of Connacht, and it’s about channelling that into the way we want to play, about being calm and working as a team, and if we do that, our guys will last.

“Confidence comes from winning, but it is [about] understanding why we won – because we do this right in training and it works in the game.

“Glasgow are a class side, they have so much depth and quality, and they are big men and that is what we have to manage.

“Everyone will think Glasgow should win and rightly so, but for this group of guys there is a lot of belief that if we do our job and go through our processes every day, we will give ourselves a good chance again.”

The Warriors meanwhile overcame the dismissal of flanker Tyrone Holmes to beat Newport Gwent Dragons 33-13 and will be looking to extend their unbeaten run at Scotstoun which stretches back to last November.

Captain Al Kellock will make his first appearance since last season’s final – Warriors’ only loss in their last 13 league games – while centre James Downey will make his full debut after joining from Munster in the summer.

And Townsend is under no illusions of the task facing his squad given Connacht’s recent form.

“Connacht are one of the form teams in the league right now and had an impressive win against Leinster last weekend which, combined with their win away at Toulouse last season, shows the progress that we are making under Pat Lam,” Townsend said.

“The game is another big test for our squad, but one we’re all looking forward to. It’ll be good to be back home at Scotstoun, playing in front of our own supporters, after a couple of weeks on the road.

“We welcome Al Kellock, Tom Ryder and Finn Russell back from injury. They’ve all worked really hard to come back and it’s great news that we can include them in our squad for this game.”

 

Venue: Scotstoun Stadium, 19:35 BST
Referee: Cladio Blessano (FIR, 6th competition game)
Assistant Referees: Mike Adamson, Stephen Ward (both SRU)
Citing Commissioner: John Montgomery (SRU)

 

Leinster vs Cardiff Blues

Cardiff Blues director of rugby Mark Hammett insists his side’s unforgiving run of fixtures against top opposition will be beneficial in the long run – with Leinster providing the next big test.

Hammett began his tenure with the Blues in the Guinness PRO12 with a win away to Zebre but has since seen both Glasgow Warriors and Ulster leave the BT Sport Cardiff Arms Park with victories.

They now must travel to the RDS Arena, where their opponents and reigning PRO12 champions Leinster haven’t lost in any competition since March 2013.

And knowing his side are still a work in progress, Hammett believes Friday evening’s fixture is another opportunity to showcase the development that he has so far seen.

“It’s an unforgiving start for us – but it gives us a really good picture of where we are,” Hammett told the Blues’ website.

“The fixture list doesn’t bother me. If we can start developing and doing what we want against these strong sides it should leave us in better shape through the tournament.

“The attitude is fantastic and the application is good. It was nice to hear Rory Best talk about us being one of the most physical games he had had last week, especially in the first half.

“We know we have got a lot to do to develop our game and systems on and off the field. We know that is going to take time.

“I have inherited a group of players and management and we are all learning about each other. That is part of this journey we are on, but it is an exciting journey and this is just the start.”

Despite a new coaching set-up, the odds are stacked even higher against the Blues as they have not beaten their Irish opponents in their last 15 encounters.

But Hammett has made seven changes as his side look to break that record, with Gethin Jenkins coming in to make his first league appearance this season alongside Kristian Dacey in the front-row.

Lock Chris Dicomidis will also have his first PRO12 outing, while Cory Allen, Dafydd Hewitt, George Watkins and Wales captain Sam Warburton are also in.

Leinster themselves have not enjoyed the best of starts to the new PRO12 season, tasting defeat twice already at the hands of Glasgow Warriors and most recently Connacht.

They have also made a number of changes as Kane Douglas earns his first start for the club and Gordon D’Arcy and Marty Moore come in.

And given their start to the season, wing Darragh Fanning insists there will be no margin for error on Friday night as they look to put an early-season wobble behind them.

“There’s a lot of things we have to fix,” Fanning told the club website. “In the first 20 minutes (against Connacht) I thought we were very, very good.

“We felt really comfortable out there and I thought our set piece was going well, we were attacking well.

“We had two good chances, with two TMO decisions just going against us. They got one chance and they took their one chance.

“At the end of the day the only stat is the result and they won. This week we’ve just got to focus on Cardiff, try to learn from what we did last week.

“We’ve got to keep setting our high standards, which we always focus on.”

 

Venue: RDS Arena, 19:35 BST
Live on TG4 
Referee: Ian Davies (WRU, 19th competition game)
Assistant Referees: Mark Patton, Will O’Connor (both IRFU)
Citing Commissioner: Denis Templeton (IRFU)
TMO: John Carvill (IRFU)

 

Zebre vs Ulster

Zebre have slipped to four straight defeats in the Guinness PRO12 since their 30-27 victory at home to Ospreys in May.

Zebre are yet to defeat an Irish province in their 22 previous encounters.

Ulster are one of four unbeaten sides in the PRO12 this season having gained victories over Zebre and Cardiff Blues in the last two rounds added to a draw with Scarlets in round 1.

The Ulstermen have not been defeated by an Italian opponent since Treviso visited Belfast in October 2011.

Ulster have already beaten Zebre this season, 33-13 at Kingspan Stadium in round 2.

 

Venue: Stadio XXV Aprile, 16:00 Italy Time (15:00 BST)
Live on BBC NI
Referee: Peter Fitzgibbon (IRFU, 59th competition game)
Assistant Referees: Mateo Liperini, Stefano Penne (both IRFU)
Citing Commissioner: Russell Howell (WRU)
TMO: Carlo Damasco (FIR)

 

Munster vs Ospreys

Munster have won their last two Guinness PRO12 encounters – both against Italian opponents.

The Munstermen have not won three in a row in the competition since February.

Last season Munster had a won 7, lost 1 record against Welsh regions, the single defeat being at the Scarlets in round 15.

Table-topping Ospreys have won their last four PRO12 matches since tripping up to Zebre in Parma in May.

Ospreys have been victorious in their last two games against Irish provinces but have not won three such successive games since February 2013.

Munster are unbeaten in their last there encounters with Ospreys since the Welshmen’s victory at Liberty Stadium in September 2012. Ospreys have won just once in Limerick since April 2010: 17-13 in the PRO12 on 8 October 2011.

 

Venue: Thomond Park, 18:30 BST
Live on Sky Sports
Referee: Neil Hennessy (WRU, 20th competition game)
Assistant Referees: Gary Conway, Nigel Correll (both IRFU)
Citing Commissioner: Gordon Black (IRFU)
TMO: Dermot Moloney (IRFU)

 

Newport Gwent Dragons vs Benetton Treviso

Newport Gwent Dragons have won just one of their last eleven Guinness PRO12 fixtures: 20-19 at home to Treviso in round 22 last season, Dragons have never begun a PRO12 campaign with four defeats.

The Men from Gwent have won just one of their last five fixtures at Rodney Parade, 20-19 over Treviso in May.

Benetton Treviso have slipped to six straight PRO12 defeats since beating the Dragons at Stadio Monigo on 12th April – their only victory over a Welsh region since May 2013.

The Italians have not won an away game since they visited Llanelli and beat the Scarlets in the last round of the 2012/13 season.

The last four encounters between the two sides have all been won by the home side on the day, whilst Treviso’s only previous PRO12 victory at Rodney Parade was 33-32 on 13th April 2012.

 

Venue: Rodney Parade, 16:00 BST
Live on S4C
Referee: Andrew McMenemy (SRU,32nd competition game)
Assistant Referees: Rhys Thomas, Neil Perkins (both WRU)
Citing Commissioner: Russell Howell (WRU)
TMO: Gareth Simmonds (WRU)

 

Table:

Pos		Team		P	W	D	L	PF	PA	Diff	TF	TA	TB	LB	Pts
1			Ospreys	3	3	0	0	123	41	82	16	2	2	0	14
2			Glasgow Warriors	3	3	0	0	88	45	43	10	3	1	0	13
3			Connacht	3	3	0	0	40	33	7	4	2	0	0	12
4			Ulster	3	2	1	0	91	54	37	11	5	2	0	12
5			Munster	3	2	0	1	65	29	36	9	3	1	1	10
6			Scarlets	3	1	1	1	87	74	13	13	10	2	0	8
7			Leinster	3	1	0	2	71	44	27	8	6	1	2	7
8			Cardiff Blues	3	1	0	2	62	85	-23	5	8	1	0	5
9			Edinburgh	3	1	0	2	40	89	-49	3	12	0	1	5
10			Newport Gwent Dragons	3	0	0	3	39	66	-27	2	8	0	2	2
11			Zebre	3	0	0	3	44	105	-61	5	15	0	0	0
12			Benetton Treviso	3	0	0	3	23	108	-85	2	14	0	0	0