Andrew Brace (IRFU) is reffing this. I don't think I've ever seen him officiate, anyone familiar with him? Assistants, tmo and citing commissioner all Welsh.... At least there is a tmo I suppose

Bundee needs to rested and soon, he's been involved in every game so far and there are 9 more games (by my count) before a break in the fixtures. Maybe he should be rested this week or Newcastle at home

And then the possibilties for Lam to choose

4/5/19 between Roux/Dillane/Marshall/Muldowney
14/15/23 Parata/Leader, TOH/Leader, Parata/TOH, Niyi/TOH, Niyi/Leader
10/21 AJ or Carty

Sorry i forgot n°20 choice between Naoupu and SOB too

Very hard to know how Cardiff will approach this game mentally, do they rest players for a tough four weeks afterwards, or go all out for a desperately needed win before two difficult european games and two derbies? Part of me feels like a stronger selection will benefit connacht as it won't allow for any complacency.

I wouldn't agree that Blues' league position is false, if you strip out their games against Zebre & Calvisano (try count 18-1 in Cardiff's favour) they've scored 14 tries and conceded 29 in 8 games. They could conceivably finish 11th, given Zebre's uptick in form since their internationals returned.

Losing on Friday would be hugely damaging as I'd expect everyone except Treviso and Dragons to get 4 points in Cardiff. We'll see if we're smart enough to not get into an arm wrestle, as that's their best chance of putting us away.

Obviously the players that are missing are a loss but we have depth to cover. We also have a number of players coming back this week so there is positives also. Cardiff look a bit stretched themselves.

Sam Warburton went off Saturday and left the stadium in a protective boot so doubt he'll play on Friday, Ellis Jenkins is out for 6 weeks. Rhys Patchell was out of Saturday's game with concussion. Gareth Anscombe is still out. Add in Kristain Dacey, Matthew Rees suspension and Tom James and they have plenty to worry about also. Cory Allen is still missing also obviously.

Our big problem over the years has been backing up big results the following week. After beating Ospreys we did get over Edinburgh and Treviso to be fair (albeit unconvincingly) but this is a tougher challenge. Another win here puts us top for Christmas which would be unbelievable.

Cardiff have had a lot of away games already due to the World Cup so the table is a bit false. They did well in all their games in Ireland but only picked up 3 points. Their big mess up was against Zebre away. They have conceded a lot of points but looking at them on Saturday it was a dire game but they soaked up a lot of pressure from the Ospreys and looked relatively comfortable in defence for long stages before eventually Ospreys ground them down. Against Harlequins they played well for most of the 1st half but conceded 3 of Harlequins 4 tries from intercepts/turnovers in the 2nd half.

If we can transition quickly between defence and attack we can cause them huge problems but defensively we'll need to be disciplined again. In Galway their maul caused us a lot of problems and they looked dangerous all through scoring 31 and but for some poor kicking could have been in a position to win that late on.

I want this win nearly more than the Munster one though. Last year's defeat was in my opinion mainly of our own making but it still leaves a sour taste that hopefully we can put right on Friday.

with squad update they are the obvious choices

1) Lough
2) Delahunt
3) White
6) Muldoon
7) Connolly
McKeon
9) Marms
11) Healy
12) Ron
13) Aki

17) Bealham
18) AhYou
21) Porter


And then the possibilties for Lam to choose

4/5/19 between Roux/Dillane/Marshall/Muldowney
14/15/23 Parata/Leader, TOH/Leader, Parata/TOH, Niyi/TOH, Niyi/Leader
10/21 AJ or Carty

connachta wrote: With the magnificent win in Thomond Park, and Challenge cup to rotate the squad the week after, I'm favourable of maintaining our heroes to keep going that well....

Only personal changes would be on the bench, Marshall/Roux as 19, and Browne or McKeon as 20

Unfortunately sounds like there will be some enforced changes. Was hoping someone was playing a joke about Henshaw and Buckley being out then added Masterson for good measure but no such luck. Pat will still be able to name a team that is well capable of beating Cardiff, but the injuries are worrisome. The list of returning players is encouraging though so let's hope that going forward there will be more traffic coming off the physio's table than going on.

Oh boy do we owe them after last season. Really looking forward to this game. I assume the Dáil are showing it?

For anyone heading to Cardiff for the game on Friday.
Plan is to meet at the City Arms pub (opposite Gate 3 of Millennium Stadium) at 13.30 / 14.00.

If you are going it post up here.

We have some spare tickets.

With the magnificent win in Thomond Park, and Challenge cup to rotate the squad the week after, I'm favourable of maintaining our heroes to keep going that well....

Only personal changes would be on the bench, Marshall/Roux as 19, and Browne or McKeon as 20