GUINNESS PRO12: Round 10 Preview
The battle to reach the GUINNESS PRO12 final is closing in on the halfway point and already it is impossible to project just who will reach the semi-finals come May. Munster go into round 10 as table toppers – the fourth team to do so this season – but fellow former champions Leinster and the Ospreys are in hot pursuit.
Entertainment has been the calling card of the GUINNESS PRO12 this season with the 277 tries scored pointing towards a record-setting campaign, but teams now will look to their returning international stars to further lift the intensity of their title challenges.
During November 84 players combined for Italy, Ireland, Scotland and Wales to take wins over all of the 2015 World Cup semi-finalists – Argentina, Australia, New Zealand and South Africa. In addition, 17 rising talents from the PRO12 won their first caps between all four competing PRO12 nations.
Round 10 is the last weekend of GUINNESS PRO12 action until the festive fixtures begin and all 12 sides are looking to consolidate their positions in the Championship table before returning to the European pool stages. Cardiff Blues and Ulster will play out an intriguing game at BT Sport Cardiff Arms Park on Saturday, live on Sky Sports, where both early title contenders are looking to arrest losing streaks.
Ulster have lost three in a row and have not lost four in succession since 2011, but the Blues, too, need to break a run that has seen just one victory in five PRO12 fixtures. The Ospreys, unbeaten at Liberty Stadium this season, will be looking to capitalise on an Edinburgh team that has just one road triumph to their name in over a year.
Opposing records clash at the RDS, too, where Leinster have won their last 16 Championship fixtures and come up against a Newport Gwent Dragons side that has lost on their last 16 away trips. Connacht host Benetton Treviso who are searching for their first win outside of Italy since 2013, meanwhile Zebre entertain the surging Scarlets who are looking to make it seven wins in a row.
GUINNESS PRO12 – ROUND 10 FIXTURES:
Friday, December 2 –
Ospreys (3rd) v Edinburgh (10th), Liberty Stadium, 7.35pm (live BBC 2 Wales)
Glasgow Warriors (5th) v MUNSTER (1st), Scotstoun Stadium, 7.35pm (live TG4/BBC ALBA)
Saturday, December 3 –
CONNACHT (8th) v Benetton Treviso (12th), the Sportsground, 3pm
Zebre (11th) v Scarlets (4th), Stadio Sergio Lanfranchi, 2.05pm local time (live Eurosport Italia)
Cardiff Blues (7th) v ULSTER (6th), BT Sport Cardiff Arms Park, 5.15pm (live Sky Sports 3 HD)
LEINSTER (2nd) v Newport Gwent Dragons (9th), the RDS, 7.35pm (live TG4/S4C)
In the pick of the round 10 matches, Munster travel to Glasgow Warriors on Friday night as Championship leaders but Gregor Townsend’s charges will be keen to get their challenge back on the right track after losses to the Scarlets and Ospreys.
Although Munster have a seven-point lead on the fifth-placed Warriors, the hosts have not lost three in a row since the 2010/11 season and they are sure to be bolstered by the return of some of their Scotland internationals.
It is a precarious fixture for the visitors who could see either the Ospreys or Leinster leapfrog them into top spot given that the two sides play at home this weekend.
Munster will look to star performers such as Ronan O’Mahony and Tyler Bleyendaal, while captain Peter O’Mahony could factor into selection after his GUINNESS Series spell with Ireland. The Warriors should have a whole host of talent available to them as they seek to get a foothold back in the top four.
TOP PERFORMERS IN GUINNESS PRO12 AFTER ROUND 9 (Powered by Opta Statistics):
TOP POINTS SCORERS –
Rhys Patchell (Scarlets) 71
Tyler Bleyendaal (Munster) 57
Isa Nacewa (Leinster) 56
Steve Shingler (Cardiff Blues) 54
Sam Davies (Ospreys) 51
TOP TRY SCORERS –
Tommy Seymour (Glasgow Warriors) 7
Tom James (Cardiff Blues) 6
Adam Byrne (Leinster) 5
Ben John (Ospreys) 5
TOP TRY ASSISTS –
Sam Davies (Ospreys) 6
Josh Matavesi (Ospreys) 5
Tyler Bleyendaal (Munster) 5
Henry Pyrgos (Glasgow Warriors) 4
Stuart Hogg (Glasgow Warriors) 4
Rhys Webb (Ospreys) 4
Duncan Williams (Munster) 4
METRES GAINED –
Tiernan O’Halloran (Connacht) 723
Dan Evans (Ospreys) 615
Matthew Morgan (Cardiff Blues) 577
Tom James (Cardiff Blues) 559
Steff Evans (Scarlets) 508
MOST CARRIES –
Bundee Aki (Connacht) 114
Ed Jackson (Newport Gwent Dragons) 97
Olly Cracknell (Ospreys) 93
Tiernan O’Halloran (Munster) 86
Rey Lee-Lo (Cardiff Blues) 84
CLEAN BREAKS –
Tom James (Cardiff Blues) 17
Rey Lee-Lo (Cardiff Blues) 12
Tommy Seymour (Glasgow Warriors) 12
Darren Sweetnam (Munster) 12
Steff Evans (Scarlets) 12
DEFENDERS BEATEN –
Bundee Aki (Connacht) 30
Steff Evans (Scarlets) 27
Ben John (Ospreys) 27
Magnus Bradbury (Edinburgh) 27
Rey Lee-Lo (Cardiff Blues) 25
MOST PASSES –
Ruan Pienaar (Ulster) 633
Tom Habberfield (Ospreys) 468
Caolin Blade (Connacht) 418
Jamison Gibson Park (Leinster) 384
Lloyd Williams (Cardiff Blues) 372
MOST OFFLOADS –
Rey Lee-Lo (Cardiff Blues) 14
Josh Matavesi (Ospreys) 14
Charles Piutau (Ulster) 13
Bundee Aki (Connacht) 12
Noel Reid (Leinster) 10
Ashley Beck (Ospreys) 10
KICKS FROM HAND –
Rhys Patchell (Scarlets) 95
Carlo Canna (Zebre) 92
Duncan Weir (Edinburgh) 81
Sam Davies (Ospreys) 79
Jack Carty (Connacht) 75
MOST TACKLES –
Sean Reidy (Ulster) 112
Lewis Evans (Newport Gwent Dragons) 107
Billy Holland (Munster) 107
Nic Cudd (Newport Gwent Dragons) 102
James Davies (Scarlets) 92
LINEOUTS WON –
Ben Toolis (Edinburgh) 55
Grant Gilchrist (Edinburgh) 34
Dries van Schalkwyk (Zebre) 31
Aaron Shingler (Scarlets) 29
Rory Thornton (Ospreys) 28
TURNOVERS WON –
James Davies (Scarlets) 12
Dan Leavy (Leinster) 10
Jack O’Donoghue (Munster) 9
Magnus Bradbury (Edinburgh) 7
Billy Holland (Munster) 7
Tommaso Castello (Zebre) 7
Ollie Griffiths (Newport Gwent Dragons) 7
Justin Tipuric (Ospreys) 7
John Barclay (Scarlets) 7
For more statistics, please visit www.pro12rugby.com/powered-by-opta