PRO14 opening fixtures announced
The PRO14 champions Leinster will travel to Cardiff to take on the Blues on the opening day of the season on Friday August 31st.
It sees the current Champions Cup holders face off against the Challenge Cup holders at the Cardiff Arms Park and will be John Mulvihill’s first senior game in charge of the Welsh outfit.
On the same night Ospreys Rugby host Edinburgh Rugby at the Liberty Stadium, where George North could make his debut for his new club.
On Saturday two former champions Connacht Rugby and Glasgow Warriors face off at The Sportsground at 3pm.
Ulster Rugby under interim head coach Simon Easterby will host 2017 champions Scarlets at the Kingspan Stadium at 17.15, with Munster having a home tie with the Toyota Cheetahs at the same time.
Bernard Jackman’s Dragons, who will be without the suspended Ross Moriarty for their opening game, take on Bennetton Rugby at Rodney Parade, while Zebre Rugby Club will play Southern Kings at Stadio Sergio Lanfranchi.
New Era for #GUINNESSPRO14 will kick off in Wales live on @PremierSportsTV & @eirSport
Full Story: https://t.co/s81cmT99Ei— BKT United Rugby Championship (URC) (@URCOfficial) July 24, 2018
There will be a repeat of the last year’s PRO14 final in round two as the Scarlets play host to Leinster on September 8th.
We will begin our #GUINNESSPRO14 title defence with a trip to Challenge Cup champions @cardiff_blues.
Full fixture list: https://t.co/RekEy42gxN pic.twitter.com/EY8jrCN2Re
— Leinster Rugby (@leinsterrugby) July 24, 2018
Leinster’s first home game won’t be until round three when the Dragons come to the RDS on September 15th. The eagerly anticipated Leinster v Munster game has been confirmed for the Aviva Stadium on October 6th, while there is a double dose of Welsh derbies on the same day with the Scarlets v Ospreys Rugby and Dragons v Blues.
Tournament Director, David Jordan, said: “For the first-time ever we have produced fixtures with Kick-Off times and dates right up to Round 17 which we have never been able to do before. When you consider the planning required around incoming and outbound South African tours, it’s fantastic to have so much of the season mapped out ahead of us at this point.
The Christmas schedule, which includes the first 1872 Cup match of the season between the two Scottish clubs, is as follows:
ROUND 11
Friday, December 21 (all kick-off times are local)
19:35 Ulster Rugby v Munster Rugby, Kingspan Stadium
Saturday, December 22 (all kick-off times are local)
15:00 Ospreys Rugby v Scarlets, Liberty Stadium
17:15 Cardiff Blues v Dragons, Cardiff Arms Park
17:15 Edinburgh Rugby v Glasgow Warriors, BT Murrayfield Stadium
19:45 Leinster Rugby v Connacht Rugby, RDS Arena
TBC Zebre v Benetton Rugby, Stadio Sergio Lanfranchi
ROUND 12
Friday, December 28 (all kick-off times are local)
19:35 Connacht Rugby v Ulster Rugby, Sportsground
Saturday, December 29 (all kick-off times are local)
TBC Benetton Rugby v Zebre, Stadio Monigo
15:00 Glasgow Warriors v Edinburgh Rugby, Scotstoun
17:15 Munster Rugby v Leinster Rugby, Thomond Park
17:15 Scarlets v Cardiff Blues, Parc y Scarlets
Sunday, December 30 (all kick-off times are local)
15:00 Dragons v Ospreys Rugby, Rodney Parade
ROUND 13
Saturday, January 5 (all kick-off times are local)
15:00 Benetton Rugby v Glasgow Warriors, Stadio Monigo
17:15 Leinster Rugby v Ulster Rugby, RDS Arena
17:15 Scarlets v Dragons, Parc y Scarlets
19:35 Edinburgh Rugby v Southern Kings, BT Murrayfield
19:35 Connacht Rugby v Munster Rugby, Sportsground
Sunday, January 6 (all kick-off times are local)
14:00 Zebre v Toyota Cheetahs, Stadio Sergio Lanfranchi
January 4/5/6
TBC Ospreys Rugby v Cardiff Blues
The first South African derby will see Southern Kings v Toyota Cheetahs at Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium on January 19th.
Continue reading below…
The team line-ups for the Guinness PRO14 Conferences will remain unchanged for the upcoming season to ensure a balance of fixtures for all teams across the initial two seasons following expansion.
This decision comes after consultation with clubs across the Guinness PRO14 to determine the best course of action for the Championship and all of the teams who compete in it.
The overriding factor was the ability to ensure equal home and away fixtures for each team across a two-year window. It also means that each team will have played away to all of the other sides in that same period.
Jordan explained the decision “Initially, we envisioned the Conference line-ups changing from year to year but having reviewed the previous season it was felt that our clubs would be better served working in a two-year cycle to ensure the balance of fixtures.
Andrew Milliard, Managing Director of Ospreys Rugby, thinks it’s the right call.
“All teams get a fair return on their fixtures from last season to balance out the difference in home and away games. Now, top teams such as Edinburgh and Ulster will return to Liberty Stadium this year and we’ll also get to keep building our rivalries with teams in our Conference such as Munster, the Toyota Cheetahs and Glasgow Warriors.” he said.
Conference A
Glasgow Warriors
Munster Rugby
Toyota Cheetahs
Cardiff Blues
Ospreys
Connacht Rugby
Zebre
Conference B
Leinster Rugby
Scarlets
Edinburgh Rugby
Ulster Rugby
Benetton Rugby
Dragons
Southern Kings
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Comments on RugbyPass
Just what the Sharks needed to get things going in the right direction Defence on the outside really creates havoc for the whole team and needs to be addressed.
7 Go to commentsWell done guys both teams will be ready to play knockout rugby.
1 Go to commentsSurprised that Ramos isn't starting at 15. But what a squad of galacticos!
2 Go to commentsWhy is it a snub? What journalistic garbage is that? Sure the guy is a great player, but there are plenty of loose forwards and not all of them can be Springboks. Also, I know of no-one who doubts Rassie’s judgment. South Africa has a conveyor belt of loose forwards that just keeps producing, so the competition is intense. I certainly wish him well, but there is no entitlement and there is no snub.
17 Go to commentsSkelton may be brought back for the Wallabies so that would be the only reason that may hinder Wilson. Easily the form, most skilful and game IQ of any Oz 8. Valentini’s best and favourite position is 6, but lineouts may be an issue with Skelton, Valentini and Wilson. Will be interesting what Schmidt goes for but for me Wilson should be picked on form. Schmidt rewards work rate, skill and consistency. All that glitters every so often won’t be in contention. Greely is one of those players that has a knack of making the right decision. A coach is going to love him because he knows week in week out he’s going to get the job done. The second try Greely wasn’t the guy who made the initial break it was Flook, Greely was at the bottom of the ruck when Flook was off along the sideline. Greely got up and made the effort to catch up with play but also read the play nicely and hit the pass from Campbell at pace and then held the pass beautifully to Ryan.
6 Go to commentsSpot on Ben. Dead right. Havili looked great at 10. Easily the highest rugby IQ of any NZ player these days. Getting a kick charged down is a result of getting used to adjusting your depth to the line at 10, which he will sort out with time. But other than that it was an outstanding first effort in that position this year. I think the NZ media has misunderstood this directive from Razor. Havili might rank behind B Barrett this year, but Beuden is 33 this month and won't last much longer. DMaC is great but flaky and not really a test match animal (his efforts in Dunedin versus Aus last year for example). If Razor can't have Mounga, DMaC is too unstructured for Razor (and is just too small for test rugby). Havili will end up our first choice first five, and in partnership with Jodie will be excellent. Two triple threat operators in tandem, and big bodies and tough tacklers to boot. Jordoe will be the ABs goal kicker. I am an Aucklander and Blues (and Warriors) fan, but Havili at 10 is going to be sensational in time… he can be the best first five in the world by the end of this year. No question.
6 Go to commentsSharks deserved to be far further back by the last quarter. Their tackling was awful, their set pieces were disappointing, their defensive organization was poor (especially on the Kok side of the D line), they kept making unnecessary errors, and they never looked like cracking the Clermont defense during those first 60m. Masuku kept them in touch, with some help from the Clermont generosity on penalty opportunities. Agree with the writer of this article. It was belligerence, and ability to raise their pressure game just enough, that turned the last quarter into a Bok-style shutout. Clermont have a reputation of not playing the full 80m, and there was a bit of that for sure. But, quite often when the intensity of a team drops off in the last quarter credit is due to the opponent for tiring them out. At 60m, with the Kok try, you thought that just maybe the game was on. At 70m, with the Mapimpi contribution, one felt that Clermont were fading, while facing a team that would maintain the pressure game through the final whistle. Good win in the end, but the Sharks are still playing way below their potential. And with their resources, and a coach that has had enough time to figure things out, they are running out of excuses.
7 Go to commentsGood riddance
1 Go to commentswel the crusaders were beaten by a queensland reds side that hadnt beaten them at home since 1999 and queensland reds partied like it was 1999
6 Go to commentsHard to disagree with the 5 points - with the exception that Wilson should be a squad member but, depending on the other loose forward selections, is not yet a shoo-in. McReight is. Aussie is looking a lot better this year and JS has some selection options. Also, Havili’s tendency to get caught, charged down is also a liability at times but he seemed focused (mostly) and is definitely a consideration for utility back-up. Still feel Reihana is a better prospect at 1st five for Saders.
6 Go to commentsYeah nah, still not sure on Havili tbh. Even though I’m a Crusaders fan through and through I’d be stunned if Razor considers him after seeing some of the stunning talent coming through up North.
6 Go to commentsThink it was a great defensive performance by Northampton. They didn't have stage fright in the first half, the Nienaber defense smothered them. They limited Leinster to 15-3 in the first half. It could have been over by then. A great try from Leinster in the start of the second half looked to have sealed it. But Byrne missed another conversion. Northampton started trying little kicks behind the Leinster wingers. Leinster messed one and Smith brilliantly made the conversion. Leinster decided to tighten the game after Byrne missed a straight forward penalty. A few errors got NH into the 22 and they scored and converted with a few minutes left. Another brilliant steal from Lawes saw NH have a final attack which was turned over by Conan. A classic semi final. World record attendance of 82,300. Leinsters 3 week preparation warranted for this one.
1 Go to commentsJust came back from the game and the atmosphere was amazing. Players stayed afterwards for more than a hour to sign stuff and take photos with fans. Great day out.
7 Go to commentsA great game. The Sharks without Etsebeth are a shadow of the team compared to when he plays. The limitations of Some of the expensive Sharks players are being exposed. Credit to Clermont for some exhilaration play at times.
7 Go to comments100% Mr Owens. But who would want to be a referee.? It must be the most difficult job on earth.
1 Go to commentsStarts to be overdone and oversold this systematic SA narrative…which nevertheless has the merit in this case to recognise blatant refereeing mistakes in their favor
7 Go to commentsNice article. Shades of Steinbeck. They can win the final if they take the game seriously; but only if they take it seriously.
7 Go to commentsWhat a sad way to end a glittering career. Somebody should tell him to delete his social media accounts and face the consequences of what he's done. Then he should slip away quietly into obscurity. This isn't likely to happen, something tells me he'll be back in The Sun / Daily Mail sooner rather than later.
5 Go to commentsguys its fine! he understands why he did what he did and has taken accountability for it; why should he have to be accountable to a court? after all he did was abuse people in person - its not as if he was engaging in _online_ abuse!
5 Go to commentsChiefs flanker Kaylum Boshier yellow-carded for collapsing the scrum as it rolled towards the line. It was a maul….
1 Go to comments