The United Rugby Championship’s Round Four action is set for kick-off as eight matches take place, ending with Cardiff Rugby and Munster hosting the Sharks and Connacht respectively on Saturday.
Check on all the team news for the weekend, including Friday’s games, while we also attempt to predict the results of the fixtures.
Friday
Dragons v Stormers
Prediction:Dragons by 5
The teams:
Dragons: 15 Jordan Williams, 14 Jonah Holmes, 13 Jack Dixon, 12 Aneurin Owen, 11 Jordan Olowofela, 10 Sam Davies, 9 Gonzalo Bertranou, 8 Aaron Wainwright, 7 Taine Basham, 6 Ross Moriarty (c), 5 Ben Carter, 4 Will Rowlands, 3 Mesake Doge, 2 Elliot Dee, 1 Greg BatemanReplacements: 16 Taylor Davies, 17 Aki Seiuli, 18 Chris Coleman, 19 Joe Davies, 20 Joe Maksymiw, 21 Ollie Griffiths, 22 Rhodri Williams, 23 Josh Lewis
Stormers: 15 Warrick Gelant, 14 Leolin Zas, 13 Ruhan Nel, 12 Dan du Plessis, 11 Edwill van der Merwe, 10 Manie Libbok, 9 Stefan Ungerer, 8 Evan Roos, 7 Willie Engelbrecht, 6 Junior Pokomela, 5 Salmaan Moerat (c), 4 Ernst van Rhyn, 3 Neethling Fouche, 2 Scarra Ntubeni, 1 Brok HarrisReplacements: 16 JJ Kotze, 17 Kwenzo Blose, 18 Sazi Sandi, 19 Justin Basson, 20 Marcel Theunissen, 21 Paul de Wet, 22 Tim Swiel, 23 Juan de Jongh
Venue: Rodney ParadeKick-off: 19:35 BST (18:35 GMT)Referee: Gianluca Gnecchi (FIR)Assistant Referees: Gwyn Morris (WRU), Ben Breakspear (WRU)TMO: Emanuele Tomo (FIR)
Ulster v Lions
Prediction: Ulster by 12
The teams:
Ulster: 15 Will Addison, 14 Craig Gilroy, 13 James Hume, 12 Stewart Moore, 11 Ethan McIlroy, 10 Billy Burns, 9 Nathan Doak, 8 David McCann, 7 Nick Timoney, 6 Matty Rea, 5 Sam Carter (c), 4 Alan O’Connor, 3 Tom O’Toole, 2 Rob Herring, 1 Andrew WarwickReplacements: 16 Brad Roberts, 17 Eric O’Sullivan, 18 Ross Kane, 19 Kieran Treadwell, 20 Sean Reidy, 21 David Shanahan, 22 Mike Lowry, 23 Ben Moxham
Lions: 15 Divan Rossouw, 14 Stean Pienaar, 13 Manuel Rass, 12 Burger Odendaal (c), 11 Rabz Maxwane, 10 EW Viljoen, 9 Andre Warner, 8 Ruhan Straeuli, 7 Vincent Tshituka, 6 Sibusiso Sangweni, 5 Reinard Nothnagel, 4 Ruben Schoeman, 3 Carlu Sadie, 2 Jaco Visagie, 1 Sti SitholeReplacements: 16 PJ Botha, 17 Ruan Dreyer, 18 Asenathi Ntlabakanye, 19 Wilhelm van der Sluys, 20 Emmanuel Tshituka, 21 Morne van den Berg, 22 Fred Zeilinga, 23 Wandisile Simelane
Venue: Kingspan StadiumKick-off: 19:35 BST (18:35 GMT)Referee: Mike Adamson (SRU)Assistant Referees: Robert O’Sullivan (IRFU), Dermot Blake (IRFU)TMO: Andrew McMenemy (SRU)
Saturday
🆕 Here is your Glasgow Warriors team to take on @ZebreRugby in Parma tomorrow afternoon, brought to you by @MackenzieConstr
Read: https://t.co/9eQgk8rYjW
The match is live on Premier Sports 1, kick-off 1pm.#WhateverItTakes ⚔️🛡️ pic.twitter.com/tZbfsL3bvZ
— Glasgow Warriors (@GlasgowWarriors) October 15, 2021
Zebre v Glasgow Warriors
Prediction:Glasgow Warriors by 8
The teams:
Zebre: 15 Junior Laloifi, 14 Pierre Bruno, 13 Giulio Bisegni (c), 12 Tommaso Boni, 11 Asaeli Tuivuaka, 10 Carlo Canna, 9 Alessandro Fusco, 8 Giovanni Licata, 7 Renato Giammarioli, 6 Maxime Mbandà, 5 Andrea Zambonin, 4 David Sisi, 3 Matteo Nocera, 2 Luca Bigi, 1 Danilo FischettiReplacements:16 Oliviero Fabiani, 17 Andrea Lovotti, 18 Eduardo Bello, 19 Cristian Stoian, 20 Luca Andreani, 21 Marcello Violi, 22 Paolo Pescetto, 23 Erich Cronjé
Glasgow Warriors: 15 Cole Forbes, 14 Sebastian Cancelliere, 13 Nick Grigg, 12 Sione Tuipulotu, 11 Rufus McLean, 10 Duncan Weir, 9 George Horne, 8 Ryan Wilson (c), 7 Rory Darge, 6 Ally Miller, 5 Richie Gray, 4 Lewis Bean, 3 Oli Kebble, 2 Johnny Matthews, 1 Jamie BhattiReplacements:16 Fraser Brown, 17 Brad Thyer, 18 Enrique Pieretto, 19 Rob Harley, 20 Thomas Gordon, 21 Sean Kennedy, 22 Ross Thompson, 23 Stafford McDowall
Venue: Stadio Sergio LafranchiKick-off: 14:00 local (13:00 BST, 12:00 GMT)Referee: Andrew Brace (IRFU)Assistant Referees: Riccardo Angelucci (FIR), Dario Merli (FIR)TMO: Leo Colgan (IRFU)
Benetton v Ospreys
Prediction:Ospreys by 4
The teams:
Benetton: 15 Andries Coetzee, 14 Tommaso Menoncello, 13 Marco Zanon, 12 Joaquin Riera, 11 Monty Ioane, 10 Tomas Albornoz, 9 Callum Braley, 8 Riccardo Favretto, 7 Michele Lamaro (c), 6 Giovanni Pettinelli, 5 Federico Ruzza, 4 Niccolò Cannone, 3 Tiziano Pasquali, 2 Gianmarco Lucchesi, 1 Nahuel TetazReplacements: 16 Giacomo Nicotera, 17 Cherif Traoré, 18 Ivan Nemer, 19 Irné Herbst, 20 Sebastian Negri, 21 Dewaldt Duvenage, 22 Rhyno Smith, 23 Thomas Benvenuti
Ospreys: 15 Max Nagy, 14 Alex Cuthbert, 13 Owen Watkin, 12 Keiran Williams, 11 Luke Morgan, 10 Stephen Myler, 9 Rhys Webb (c), 8 Ethan Roots, 7 Sam Cross, 6 Olly Cracknell, 5 Alun Wyn Jones, 4 Bradley Davies, 3 Tomas Francis, 2 Elvis Taione, 1 Rhodri JonesReplacements: 16 Ifan Phillips, 17 Nicky Smith, 18 Tom Botha, 19 Rhys Davies, 20 Morgan Morris, 21 Reuben Morgan-Williams, 22 Joe Hawkins, 23 Mat Protheroe
Venue: Stadio MonigoKick-off: 16:00 local (15:00 BST, 14:00 GMT)Referee: Aimee Barrett-Theron (SARU)Assistant Referees: Filippo Russo (FIR), Alex Frasson (FIR)TMO: Stefano Penne (FIR)
Edinburgh v Bulls
Prediction: Bulls by 6
The teams:
Edinburgh: 15 Henry Immelman, 14 Darcy Graham, 13 Mark Bennett, 12 James Lang, 11 Damien Hoyland, 10 Jaco van der Walt, 9 Charlie Shiel, 8 Viliame Mata, 7 Luke Crosbie, 6 Magnus Bradbury, 5 Grant Gilchrist (c) 4 Marshall Sykes, 3 Luan de Bruin, 2 Stuart McInally, 1 Pierre SchoemanReplacements: 16 Dave Cherry, 17 Boan Venter, 18 WP Nel, 19 Pierce Phillips, 20 Mesu Kunavula, 21 Connor Boyle, 22 Ben Vellacott, 23 James Johnstone
Bulls: 15 David Kriel, 14 Madosh Tambwe, 13 Cornal Hendricks, 12 Harold Vorster, 11 Kurt-Lee Arendse, 10 Chris Smith, 9 Embrose Papier, 8 Muller Uys, 7 Arno Botha, 6 Marcell Coetzee (c), 5 Ruan Nortje, 4 Janko Swanepoel, 3 Robert Hunt, 2 Bismarck du Plessis, 1 Lizo GqobokaReplacements: 16 Schalk Erasmus, 17 Simphiwe Matanzima, 18 Jacques van Rooyen, 19 Walt Steenkamp, 20 Elrigh Louw, 21 Marco Jansen van Vuren, 22 Morne Steyn, 23 Lionel Mapoe
Venue: DAM Health StadiumKick-off: 17:15 BST (16:15 GMT)Referee: Ben Whitehouse (WRU)Assistant Referees: Ben Blain (SRU), Graeme Ormiston (SRU)TMO: Sean Brickell (WRU)
Leinster v Scarlets
Prediction: Leinster by 25
The teams:
Leinster: 15 Hugo Keenan, 14 Jordan Larmour, 13 Garry Ringrose, 12 Ciarán Frawley, 11 James Lowe, 10 Johnny Sexton (c), 9 Jamison Gibson-Park, 8 Jack Conan, 7 Josh van der Flier, 6 Caelan Doris, 5 James Ryan, 4 Ross Molony, 3 Tadhg Furlong, 2 Rónan Kelleher, 1 Andrew PorterReplacements: 16 Dan Sheehan, 17 Cian Healy, 18 Michael Ala’alatoa, 19 Ryan Baird, 20 Rhys Ruddock, 21 Luke McGrath, 22 Ross Byrne, 23 Jimmy O’Brien
Scarlets: 15 Ioan Nicholas, 14 Johnny McNicholl, 13 Jonathan Davies (c), 12 Johnny Williams, 11 Ryan Conbeer, 10 Sam Costelow, 9 Gareth Davies, 8 Blade Thomson, 7 Tomas Lezana, 6 Aaron Shingler, 5 Sam Lousi, 4 Lloyd Ashley, 3 WillGriff John, 2 Ken Owens, 1 Wyn JonesReplacements: 16 Ryan Elias, 17 Rob Evans, 18 Samson Lee, 19 Morgan Jones, 20 Shaun Evans, 21 Kieran Hardy, 22 Dan Jones, 23 Tom Rogers
Venue: RDS ArenaKick-off: 17:15 BST (16:15 GMT)Referee: Marius van der Westhuizen (SARU)Assistant Referees: Stuart Gaffikin (IRFU), Shane Kierans (IRFU)TMO: Paul Larter (SRU)
Cardiff v Sharks
Prediction:Sharks by 3
The teams:
Cardiff: 15 Matthew Morgan, 14 Aled Summerhill, 13 Owen Lane, 12 Willis Halaholo, 11 Josh Adams, 10 Rhys Priestland, 9 Tomos Williams, 8 Will Boyde, 7 Ellis Jenkins, 6 Josh Turnbull (c), 5 Rory Thornton, 4 Seb Davies, 3 Dillon Lewis, 2 Kirby Myhill, 1 Rhys CarrReplacements: 16 Kristian Dacey, 17 Rhys Gill, 18 Dmitri Arhip, 19 Teddy Williams, 20 Shane Lewis-Hughes, 21 Lloyd Williams, 22 Ben Thomas, 23 Hallam Amos
Sharks: 15 Curwin Bosch, 14 Marnus Potgieter, 13 Jeremy Ward, 12 Murray Koster, 11 Anthony Volmink, 10 Boeta Chamberlain, 9 Ruan Pienaar, 8 Phepsi Buthelezi (c), 7 Henco Venter, 6 Dylan Richardson, 5 Hyron Andrews, 4 Ruben van Heerden, 3 Thomas du Toit, 2 Kerron van Vuuren, 1 Ntuthuko MchunuReplacements: 16 Dan Jooste, 17 Khwezi Mona, 18 Wiehahn Herbst, 19 Reniel Hugo, 20 Gerbrandt Grobler, 21 James Venter, 22 Tian Meyer, 23 Werner Kok
Venue: Cardiff Arms ParkKick-off: 19:35 BST (18:35 GMT)Referee: Sam Grove-White (SRU)Assistant Referees: tbc, Wayne Davies (WRU)TMO: Andrew McMenemy (SRU)
Munster v Connacht
Prediction:Munster by 15
The teams:
Munster: 15 Mike Haley, 14 Andrew Conway, 13 Keith Earls, 12 Rory Scannell, 11 Simon Zebo, 10 Joey Carbery, 9 Craig Casey, 8 Gavin Coombes, 7 Chris Cloete, 6 Peter O’Mahony (c), 5 Tadhg Beirne, 4 Jean Kleyn, 3 John Ryan, 2 Niall Scannell, 1 Dave KilcoyneReplacements:16 Diarmuid Barron, 17 Jeremy Loughman, 18 Stephen Archer, 19 Fineen Wycherley, 20 Jack O’Donoghue, 21 Neil Cronin, 22 Jake Flannery, 23 Dan Goggin
Connacht: 15 Tiernan O’Halloran, 14 John Porch, 13 Sammy Arnold, 12 Bundee Aki, 11 Mack Hansen, 10 Jack Carty (c), 9 Caolin Blade, 8 Paul Boyle, 7 Conor Oliver, 6 Cian Prendergast, 5 Ultan Dillane, 4 Niall Murray, 3 Finlay Bealham, 2 Dave Heffernan, 1 Matthew BurkeReplacements:16 Shane Delahunt, 17 Greg McGrath, 18 Jack Aungier, 19 Eoghan Masterson, 20 Abraham Papali’i, 21 Kieran Marmion, 22 Jarrad Butler, 23 Tom Daly
Venue: Thomond ParkKick-off: 19:35 BST (18:35 GMT)Referee: Chris Busby (IRFU)Assistant Referees: Frank Murphy (IRFU), Paul Haycock (IRFU)TMO: Brian MacNeice (IRFU)