Crap. I might have to go and support Leinster against the Scarlets tonight..... Shudders

Not advertised anywhere

I can't go tonight no chance it's on tele anywhere?

I know it's not a good idea to talk down the opposition but that is an incredibly weak Treviso team :blush:

We should win fairly comfortably, but it's not good for the league to have a team so far off the pace.

Hi all! Per the front page, we'll have Mr. Eoin McKeon in the Clan Bar post match!

Treviso team announced. New centre partnership with Pratichetti moving to the wing and Christie dropped, Lucchese in at scrumhalf and one change in each line of the pack.

Benetton Rugby:
15 Jayden Hayward
14 Andrea Pratichetti
13 Tommaso Iannone
12 Enrico Bacchin
11 Simone Ragusi
10 Luke McLean
9 Alberto Lucchese
8 Braam Steyn
7 Alessandro Zanni ( C )
6 Marco Barbini
5 Jeff Montauriol
4 Filo Paulo
3 Rupert Harden
2 Luca Bigi
1 Matteo Zanusso

16 Davide Giazzon
17 Matteo Muccignat
18 Simone Ferrari
19 Dean Budd
20 Marco Lazzaroni
21 Andrea De Marchi
22 Edoardo Gori
23 Sam Christie

salmson wrote:
Leinster changed the entire team and still have 11 internationals to Scarlets 7 and many hundreds more caps, so I'd fancy them to do the job.

They started the galacticoes away to Treviso last week and start Boss this week. Cheers lads.

clanman wrote:
not sure we will be top of the league regardless as the Leinster team is a real mix n match and advantage must go to the Scarlets

Leinster changed the entire team and still have 11 internationals to Scarlets 7 and many hundreds more caps, so I'd fancy them to do the job. Most of the other games are win-win for us just so long as we do the job (Scarlets lose we go top, they win we're 8 or 10 points ahead of Leinster).

Delighted to see Dillane in at lock in the absence of Roux, I don't think Browne provides enough bulk at tighthead lock and Muldowney doesn't seem to thrive there either.

a couple of players rotated but it hasnt weakened the team by much, should still be strong enough to win the game.

not sure we will be top of the league regardless as the Leinster team is a real mix n match and advantage must go to the Scarlets

www.connachtrugby.ie/team-to-face-treviso-2/#ConnachtNews

Henshaw and Cooney for Leader and Marmion in the backs, Heffernan, White, Dillane & McKeon in for Tom Mc, Rodney, Aly and Masterson in the pack.

Strong enough starting XV and an absolutely savage bench.

15. Robbie Henshaw
14. Tiernan O’Halloran
13. Bundee Aki
12. Craig Ronaldson
11. Matt Healy
10. Jack Carty
9. John Cooney

1. Denis Buckley
2. Dave Heffernan
3. Nathan White
4. Ultan Dillane
5. Andrew Browne
6. John Muldoon (captain)
7. Nepia Fox-Matamua
8. Eoin McKeon

Replacements:

16. Tom McCartney
17. Finlay Bealham
18. Rodney Ah You
19. Aly Muldowney
20. Eoghan Masterson
21. Kieran Marmion
22. AJ MacGinty
23. Darragh Leader

Unavailable / Injured: JP Cooney, Ben Marshall, Quinn Roux, Jake Heenan, Api Pewhairangi, Dave McSharry, Shane O’Leary, Conor Finn, Fionn Carr, Danie Poolman.

Interesting little nugget on Friday's game: if we win Friday we'll have equaled our previous best run of 5 wins in a row in the Celtic League, set in August/September 2002 when Connacht defeated Borders, Cardiff, Leinster, Newport and Bridgend over successive weekends.

Tim Allnutt and Eric Elwood of this parish, and the very recently departed Michael Swift and Dan McFarland, all played in that run. Leinster's Eoin Reddan is the member of that Connacht squad still playing.

Word is only change in backline is Henshaw at FB and TOH moves to 14 instead of Leader
Ronaldson and Aki continue their centre partnership

I saw Treviso against Ulster a few weeks back and they were awful but obviously that was during the World Cup and their performances either side of that have been relatively competitive.

I'll never forget Treviso beating us at the Sportsground in the middle of that awful 15 games losing run a few years back so won't be taking them for granted but they have been steadily declining from 2012/13 the year they finished a strong 7th.

Having started well at home this season, this is an opportunity to cement our position against a team who haven't won since February who will travel with very fragile confidence and who are still trying to integrate their Italian players back into the squad after the World Cup.

4 is the basic requirement, it may be tough to get 5 but in the long run we'll probably need it.

clanman wrote: I'm expecting a tough enough game but this will depend on how they approach the game, the following week they have European game so maybe this will take their eye of our game, let's see what team is announced from them before any thoughts of a bonus point win.

they were'nt that bad against a decent Leinster team, they made them work for their bonus pint win

This is the third season in a row we meet Treviso immediately ahead of the first European games - last year they lost to us by 3 in Treviso, the season before they thumped us 23-3, also in Italy. Further back they had away wins to Ulster and Edinburgh and a 12 point loss to Edinburgh, so their form in this fixture is pretty tasty.

However their last away win (outside Italy/Zebroni asides) was a dead rubber against Scarlets in May 13, and since that 23-3 result against us two years ago they have won only 6 league games from 45 (3 v. Zebre plus home games Dragons, Edinburgh and Cardiff).

We can expect 4 points here, but given the weather forecast is looking poor, 5 may be a stretch.

I'm expecting a tough enough game but this will depend on how they approach the game, the following week they have European game so maybe this will take their eye of our game, let's see what team is announced from them before any thoughts of a bonus point win.

they were'nt that bad against a decent Leinster team, they made them work for their bonus pint win