The Six Nations is behind us, and we're officially into the business end of the season.
For the 16 remaining teams left in the Heineken Champions Cup, the road to the Aviva Stadium and the final on 20 May is starting to straighten out, with just four wins separating those left from getting their hands on the trophy.
Of the 16 teams remaining three are Irish, but there will be two at most still standing next week, with Leinster hosting Ulster at the Aviva in an Irish derby on Saturday evening.
As top seeds, Leinster will be on home soil for the rest of the competition, even the final should they get there. Whether they play one or four games between now and the end of May is still to be decided.
Ulster will be out to cause a big upset against their neighbours, but will have to park some bad memories of their last visit to Dublin in December, throwing away a 19-point lead against Leinster at the RDS before eventually going down 38-29.
And while that derby provides Leinster and Ulster with a familiar task, the same can't be said for Munster, who have traveled to Durban for the first time to face the Sharks, battling both the scorching weather conditions as well as a team loaded with Springboks, as they look to reach a record 20th quarter-final.
TV
Leinster v Munster is live on RTÉ2 and RTÉ Player, with coverage getting under way at 4.30pm. Sharks v Munster, and all other Champions Cup games are live on BT Sport, while Benetton v Connacht in the Challenge Cup will be streamed live on EPCRugby.tv
RADIO
Listen to live commentary of Leinster v Ulster on Saturday Sport on RTÉ Radio 1.
ONLINE
You can follow live updates on rte.ie/sport and the RTÉ News App along with report and reaction from the grounds.
WEATHER
Saturday is likely to have unsettled weather in Dublin, with showers throughout the day and temperatures of around 10C expected. Things will be much different in Durban where Munster face the Sharks, with clear skies forecast, as well as temperatures of around 25C. Connacht face Benetton in Treviso on Saturday, where it's likely to be 17C, with the possibility of a thunderstorm during the game.
Saturday's round of 16 tie is just a second ever meeting of these sides, but with Munster due back in South Africa to face the Stormers and Sharks in three weeks, they'll be more than familiar with each other by the end of April.
Graham Rowntree's side are embarking on their 195th game in this competition, 190 more than the Sharks, who won three from four as rookies in the pool stage, to secure home advantage in the Round of 16.
After a poor start to the season, Munster appeared to be heading in the right direction in recent months, before being blown apart 38-26 by the Glasgow Warriors last Saturday, a result that has complicated things for them in the URC.
The province have looked good in Europe, winning as expected against Northampton Saints home and away, while coming up just short in two thrilling contests with Toulouse.
Munster struggled at the scrum against Glasgow and it could be an issue again this week, with the Sharks boasting a host of South African internationals. The province's success rate of 69% on their own feed is the lowest of the tournament, while the five penalties conceded on their own feed is the joint-highest alongside Exeter Chiefs.
Meanwhile, the size of the Sharks pack is reflected in their 64% gainline success, which is the highest in the tournament.
A win for Munster would see them book their place in the quarter-finals for a record 20th time, against either Toulouse or the Bulls.
Cell C Sharks: Boeta Chamberlain; Werner Kok, Lukhanyo Am, Rohan Janse van Rensburg, Makazola Mapimpi; Curwin Bosch, Jaden Hendrikse; Ox Nché, Bongi Mbonambi, Thomas du Toit; Eben Etzebeth, Gerbrandt Grobler; Siya Kolisi (capt), Vincent Tshituka, Sikumbuzo Notshe.
Replacements: Kerron van Vuuren, Ntuthuko Mchunu, Carlu Sadie, Emile van Heerden, Phendulani Buthelezi, Grant Williams, Ben Tapuai, Thaakir Abrahams
Munster: Mike Haley; Calvin Nash, Antoine Frisch, Malakai Fekitoa, Shane Daly; Jack Crowley, Craig Casey; Dave Kilcoyne, Niall Scannell, Roman Salanoa; Jean Kleyn, RG Snyman; Peter O'Mahony (capt), John Hodnett, Gavin Coombes.
Replacements: Diarmuid Barron, Josh Wycherley, Stephen Archer, Fineen Wycherley, Jack O'Donoghue, Conor Murray, Joey Carbery, Alex Kendellen.
Referee: Wayne Barnes (RFU)
It looked like the stars were aligning for Johnny Sexton to sign off his Leinster career by sealing a fifth star on the province's jersey at the Aviva Stadium this May.
His groin injury means he's unlikely to be back playing by then, while Ulster will have plenty to say about whether Leinster will be there in the first place.
On paper, Dan McFarland's side have nothing to lose, with Leinster big favourites to advance to the quarters, but Ulster will be hugely motivated to right the wrongs of their last meeting in December, when they looked on course for a famous win only to throw away a 19-point lead and lose 38-29.
It's a third meeting of the sides in this competition, with Leinster coming out on top in a nail-biter in the quarter-finals in 2019, while they also saw off Ulster 42-14 in the 2012 final at Twickenham.
Their paths to the last 16 could hardly have been more different, with Leinster averaging seven tries and 46 points per game in their four bonus-point victories. Ulster, meanwhile, snuck into the knockout stage with just win one, defeating the Sharks 22-11 to book their place in this round.
Leinster: Hugo Keenan; Jordan Larmour, Jimmy O'Brien, Robbie Henshaw, James Lowe; Ross Byrne, Jamison Gibson-Park; Andrew Porter, Dan Sheehan, Tadhg Furlong; Ross Molony, James Ryan (capt); Ryan Baird, Josh van der Flier, Jack Conan.
Replacements: John McKee, Cian Healy, Michael Ala'alatoa, Jason Jenkins, Scott Penny, Luke McGrath, Harry Byrne, Ciarán Frawley
Ulster: Michael Lowry; Rob Baloucoune, James Hume, Stuart McCloskey, Jacob Stockdale; Billy Burns, Nathan Doak; Rory Sutherland, Rob Herring, Tom O’Toole; Alan O’Connor (capt), Kieran Treadwell; Dave McCann, Nick Timoney, Duane Vermeulen.
Replacements: Tom Stewart, Eric O’Sullivan, Jeffery Toomaga-Allen, Harry Sheridan, Marcus Rea, John Cooney, Stewart Moore, Ben Moxham.
Referee: Luke Pearce (RFU)
Regular opponents in the BKT United Rugby Championship, this is the first meeting of the pair in European competition.
Having won their opening three games, two of which came with a bonus-point, there was huge frustration around Connacht that they missed out on securing a home tie in the next round, losing to Newcastle in the final round of the pool stage.
Benetton will be boosted by the return of their frontline Italy internationals, and they've struggled in their absence, winning just one game from four since the Six Nations window begin.
Prior to that, Marco Bortlolami's side had been going through an impressive season, particularly at home where they had won five game in a row up to January.
Connacht were 21-17 winners on their last visit to Treviso, almost ne year ago to the day, while they've won their last three meetings with the Italians, who last beat them in the Rainbow Cup in May 2021
Benetton: Rhyno Smith; Edoardo Padovani, Nacho Brex, Tommaso Menoncello, Marcus Watson; Jacob Umaga, Dewaldt Duvenage (capt); Nahuel Tetaz Chaparro, Giacomo Nicotera, Tiziano Pasquali; Niccolò Cannone, Federico Ruzza; Seb Negri, Michele Lamaro, Henry Stowers.
Replacements: Siua Maile, Thomas Augustin Gallo, Filippo Alongi, Riccardo Favretto, Manuel Zuliani, Alessandro Izekor, Alessandro Garbisi, Tomas Albornoz.
Connacht: Tiernan O'Halloran; John Porch, Tom Farrell, Bundee Aki, Mack Hansen; David Hawkshaw, Caolin Blade (capt); Peter Dooley, Dave Heffernan, Jack Aungier; Leva Fifita, Niall Murray; Cian Prendergast, Conor Oliver, Paul Boyle.
Replacements: Dylan Tierney-Martin, Jordan Duggan, Sam Illo, Oisin Dowling, Shamus Hurley-Langton, Kieran Marmion, Cathal Forde, Shane Jennings.
Referee: Christophe Ridley (RFU)
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