Just seven games remain in the inaugural United Rugby Championship season.
A lot has changed since Round 1 in September, when Munster and Ulster handed out thrashings to the South African debutants.
And while it's no surprise to see Leinster, Ulster and Munster in the quarter-final draw, those running the league will be pleased with the resurgence of the South African sides, three of whom have made it through to the play-offs.
By the end of this weekend's quarter-finals, just four teams will remain. At most, there will be two Irish provinces.
Munster had a second-place finish within their grasp heading into Round 18, but their tame defeat to an understrength Leinster at the Aviva Stadium threw their season upside down, setting up an interprovincial derby with Ulster in the last eight.
Dan McFarland's side, meanwhile, may have got their blip out of the way early. After sliding down the table throughout April, they recovered with big wins against Edinburgh and Sharks to steady the ship and ensure one more home outing.
Leinster's home status through the play-offs had been secured for several weeks. Leo Cullen's side host Glasgow Warriors, needing to put last week's Champions Cup final defeat to La Rochelle to the back of their minds.
TV
Leinster v Glasgow Warriors is live on RTÉ One and RTÉ Player from 2.45pm on Saturday, while Ulster v Munster will be shown on TG4 at 7.35pm on Friday.
RADIO
Listen to live commentary from Ulster v Munster on RTÉ Radio 1 Extra and updates from Leinster v Glasgow on Saturday Sport on RTÉ Radio 1.
ONLINE
RTE.ie/sport will have live scoring and blogs across the weekend with match reports and reaction from the grounds. All games are live on URC TV.
WEATHER
Belfast is forecast to see some showers on Friday morning, but it's likely to be dry by the time Ulster and Munster get under way, with temperatures of around 15C expected. It's likely to be similar weather conditions at the RDS on Saturday afternoon, when Leinster host Glasgow.
Listen to the RTÉ Rugby podcast on Apple Podcasts, Soundcloud, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts.
Could this be Johann van Graan's last stand?
Six weeks ago, if you raised the prospect of Munster and Ulster meeting in the URC quarter-finals, a meeting in Limerick would have been far more likely than one in Belfast.
And while Munster came out on top when these sides met in at the Kingspan Stadium six weeks ago, there's not much else in the form book to suggest a victory for Van Graan's side.
That defeat of Ulster was Munster's only away win in any competition since the end of January, playing six other games away from Limerick or Cork without victory.
They've also lost all seven away games they have played in the play-off stage of the United Rugby Championship.
The team news for Munster is mixed, with Gavin Coombes, Damian de Allende and Peter O'Mahony all returning, but Jack O'Donoghue misses out through injury, while Tadhg Beirne has not been able to prove his fitness after a long layoff.
For Ulster, Mike Lowry and Marty Moore are the main absences, with Moore being stood down for the remainder of the season due to multiple concussions.
The winner of Friday night's game will be away from home in the last four, either travelling to Cape Town to face the Stormers, or heading to Scotland to face Edinburgh.
Ulster: Stewart Moore; Rob Baloucoune, James Hume, Stuart McCloskey, Ethan McIlroy; Billy Burns, John Cooney; Andrew Warwick, Rob Herring, Tom O'Toole; Alan O'Connor, Iain Henderson (capt); Marcus Rea, Nick Timoney, Duane Vermeulen.
Replacements: John Andrew, Eric O’Sullivan, Gareth Milasinovich, Kieran Treadwell, Matty Rea, Nathan Doak, Ian Madigan, Ben Moxham.
Munster: Mike Haley; Andrew Conway, Chris Farrell, Damian de Allende, Keith Earls; Joey Carbery, Conor Murray; Josh Wycherley, Niall Scannell, Stephen Archer; Jean Kleyn, Fineen Wycherley; Peter O'Mahony (capt), Alex Kendellen, Gavin Coombes.
Replacements: Diarmuid Barron, Jeremy Loughman, John Ryan, Jason Jenkins, Thomas Ahern, Craig Casey, Ben Healy, Chris Cloete.
Referee: Jaco Peyper (SARU, 10th league game)
It may not be the prize they have desperately sought, but Leinster will be firm favourites to go on and win a fifth URC title in a row in just over two weeks.
Leo Cullen's side will have to park the pain and regret of their Champions Cup final defeat to La Rochelle and focus on the task at hand, against a Glasgow side who can punish teams if not given the right respect.
The 2015 champions have played some wonderful rugby this season, with the help of former Connacht and Ireland U20 coach Nigel Carolan, who has been working as the Warriors attack coach this season.
Their defeat in Round 18 means they'll miss out on Champions Cup rugby next season at the expense of the Ospreys, owing to the URC's policy of at least one side per 'Shield' qualifying for the Champions Cup, and have won their last two games against Irish sides, beating Connacht in January and Munster in February.
However, like most teams, their form against Leinster doesn't suggest a major shock is on the cards.
They've won just one of their last seven against the Irish side; 15-12 at Scotstoun in last season's Rainbow Cup, while in their 16 previous visits to the RDS in the United Rugby Championship, the Warriors have won just two.
While Leinster have lost two of their last three games in the URC, they proved to be irrelevant to the defending champions who had secured a home quarter-final some time ago, comfortably leading the league in both tries and points scored.
Leinster: Jimmy O'Brien; Jordan Larmour, Garry Ringrose, Ciarán Frawley, Rory O'Loughlin; Ross Byrne, Jamison Gibson-Park; Andrew Porter, Dan Sheehan, Tadhg Furlong; Joe McCarthy, James Ryan (capt); Ryan Baird, Josh van der Flier, Caelan Doris
Replacements: Seán Cronin, Cian Healy, Michael Ala'alatoa, Ross Molony, Jack Conan, Luke McGrath, Harry Byrne, Robbie Henshaw
Glasgow Warriors: Ollie Smith; Josh McKay, Sione Tuipulotu, Sam Johnson, Rufus McLean; Ross Thompson, Ali Price; Jamie Bhatti, George Turner, Zander Fagerson; Rob Harley, Richie Gray; Ryan Wilson (capt), Gregor Brown, Jack Dempsey
Replacements: Fraser Brown, Oli Kebble, Simon Berghan, Lewis Bean, Kiran McDonald, Thomas Gordon, George Horne, Domingo Miotti
Referee: Andrea Piardi (FIR, 23rd league game)
FULL LIST OF FIXTURES, RESULTS AND TABLE
Both remaining quarter-finals take place on Saturday, with a 12.45pm start between the Bulls and the Sharks at Loftus Versfeld. The winner of that all-South African tie will travel to face Leinster or Glasgow in the last four.
Then it's a 6pm kickoff (Irish time) in Cape Town, where the second-seed Stormers host Edinburgh, the prize for which is a home semi-final against either Ulster or Munster.
