Six Kildare men named for URC action this weekend
Connacht captain Cian Prendergast will be looking to prove his worth once again ahead of the Six Nations in two weeks. Photo: INPHO/James Crombie
With just two weeks to go until the Six Nations gets underway, there is very little opportunity for those on the fringes of Andy Farrell's squad to make one final push to make an impression ahead of the opening game in Paris.
As always, there is plenty of Kildare involvement in the Leinster, Munster and Connacht squads, with four selected to start and another two ready to make an impact off the bench.
Connacht's new Clan Stand will be officially opened this weekend, with a sell-out crowd of over 12,000 expected to watch their side take on Leinster.
This has become the Ciaran Frawley derby with the news that the Leinster utility back is on his way to Galway next season; however, Will Connors has also been heavily linked with a move out west as well - with both men named in the Leinster starting XV.
The 29-year-old Connors is part of a strong back row alongside captain Caelan Doris (himself a Mayo man) and he could be joined in the back row by the other Kildare man in the Leinster 23, with Diarmuid Mangan named among the replacements.
Mangan covers both lock and flanker, and with Leo Cullen opting for a 6/2 split for the game, the Sallins man could as easily fill in one position or the other.
Regardless of which position Mangan features, it will be interesting to see he and Connors face off against their fellow Kildare man - the Connacht captain, Cian Prendergast.
Stuart Lancaster's side are once again led by their star Kildare flanker, as Prendergast will be pushing hard for a spot on the bench against France in two week's time.
Connacht's second Kildare man is prop Billy Bohan, who has made himself the first-choice loose head for the Western province over the past month and he too keeps his place in the starting XV.
In what will be just his fourth senior appearance, Bohan will be the veteran on his side of the scrum as he squares off with Leinster debutant Niall Smyth.
Leinster are currently on a nine-game winning strike which sees them sit fifth in the URC table, while Connacht are 14 points behind in 12th having lost six of their last seven league games, including a heavy defeat to Leinster at the start of the year at the Aviva.
Leinster have picked a strong team for the game and rightfully go in as big favourites.
Last week's defeat in Thomond Park at the hands of Castres saw Munster dumped out of the Champions Cup - the first time since 2020 that the two-time champions have failed to get out of the pool.
The URC now becomes the province's top priority, but with these fixtures being played in the shadow of the Six Nations it is fair to expect a certain amount of green-tinged analysis when looking at the games.
To that end, all eyes will be on Jeremy Loughman tonight in Cork, with the Athy man a potential starter against France.
Ireland have lost their first- and second-choice loose head props, Andrew Porter and Paddy McCarthy, and it is unclear who the next man in line will be - Leinster's Jack Boyle or one of the two Munster men, Loughman and Mike Milne.
Loughman is not the only Kildare man in the Munster squad, with Eadestown's Diarmuid Kilgallen named among the replacements.
The Kildare winger had been impressive covering the wing in the absence of Calvin Nash, but Kilgallen fell out of favour before Christmas and has struggled to force his way back into Clayton McMillan's plans.
Munster were second at Christmas, but have since fallen to sixth in the table, although they are still just six points behind Stormers at the summit.
Dragons are up to 13th in the table following their win over Scarlets at the start of the year and come in to the game on the back of an impressive win over Newcastle in the Challenge Cup.
Munster will be favourites, but Dragons are capable of an upset.
