Connacht captain Jack Carty has been ruled out of Saturday's season opener against Ulster as he continues his recovery from wrist surgery.
The out-half missed Ireland's tour of New Zealand to have an operation on the longstanding injury and the BKT United Rugby Championship derby at Kingspan Stadium has come too soon.
Carty's absence means David Hawkshaw could make his Connacht debut in Belfast, with Conor Fitzgerald also in contention.
"He's our skipper this year and you never like to miss top-quality players, but it opens up an opportunity there for either Conor Fitz or Dave Hawkshaw," said Connacht head coach Andy Friend.
"I feel really comfortable with the depth that we have got sitting in behind but in your big inter-pro games, especially away from home, if you have got your more experienced players out there you tend to have a little bit more comfort.
"That’s not to say that either of those two other blokes aren’t going to go very very well. We know that Jack’s not available but David and Conor are there and I know that those two men if they get an opportunity, they won’t let us down."
Hawkshaw was one of four summer arrivals from Leinster, with southern hemisphere duo Byron Ralston and Shamus Hurley-Langton also moving to Galway, and Friend believes all six will prove to be great additions as he looks to strengthen the squad's depth.
"Peter Dooley has slotted in seamlessly, adding in a lot of experience with his 104 caps for Leinster," said Friend. "It was a brave move for him to come down but I think it will pay nice dividends for him.
"Josh Murphy didn't train for a lot of the early part of pre-season but you saw against Sale he adds a real bit of mongrel to our pack, which we needed.
"I really like Dave Hawkshaw as a rugby player. He has real versatility and skilset, and he's a real pro as well in the way he conducts himself. He has brought a real edge to our No 10 area. With Jack out at the moment, that just gives us a bit more depth there and keeps everyone on their toes.
"Adam Byrne is a big physical man. We're yet to get the best out of him but this has been a pre-season that I he's really enjoyed. You can see the potential that man has, which is really exciting.
"The four Leinster boys have been brilliant. They're all really knowledgeable, coachable rugby players. It's great to have them on board.
"Shamus Hurley-Langton is a very dynamic back-rower. He has been working really hard. I really liked his performance against Castres. He told me his weapon was pilfering the ball and he managed to get three in that opening game. He was true to his word there.
"Byron Ralston, who joined us from the Force, he's a centre but he can also play on the wing. I've been really impressed with his start."
Jarrad Butler and Diarmuid Kilgallen will miss the Ulster game due to injury but the pair are due to resume full training next week along with Ireland prop Finlay Bealham, who has a calf injury.
Friend will hope the trio can make a speedy return, with Connacht set to discover how many players they will lose to the Emerging Ireland tour when the squad is announced on Wednesday.
Shayne Bolton has undergone surgery for a pec injury and will be sidelined for up to 14 weeks, while Shane Delahunt is targeting an October return following hamstring surgery.
Follow the 2022/23 BKT United Rugby Championship across RTÉ radio, TV, RTÉ.ie/sport and the RTÉ News app.
Watch live coverage of Cardiff v Munster and Zebre Parma v Leinster (17 September), Stormers v Connacht (24 September) and Dragons v Munster (25 September) on RTÉ2 and RTÉ Player.
