Two games take place in the PRO14 on Friday with the standout contest being another Welsh derby as the Scarlets host the Dragons.
Meanwhile, the Southern Kings return from their Christmas and New Year break by heading to Scotland to take on Edinburgh.
Scarlets v Dragons
Tighthead prop Samson Lee returns to action for the Scarlets this Friday in the Welsh derby clash against Dragons at Parc y Scarlets.
Lee’s last appearance came in the European Rugby Champions Cup clash against Bath in October and is one of eleven personnel changes to the Scarlets side that secured victory over Cardiff Blues at the Arms Park on New Year’s Eve.
Head coach Wayne Pivac has made thirteen changes to the side, two of which are positional, and Lee is one-third of a fresh front-row for the derby clash with Rob Evans and Ken Owens also making a return to the starting XV.
Australian Steve Cummins and South African David Bulbring pair up in the second-row with Aaron Shingler and John Barclay returning to the starting line-up alongside Sunday’s man of the match James Davies.
In the backline injuries have forced a reshuffle with Rhys Patchell moving to full-back with injuries to both Johnny McNicholl (shoulder) and Leigh Halfpenny (pec). Tom Prydie keeps his place on the wing with Ioan Nicholas coming in for Paul Asquith who’s unavailable due to illness.
Hadleigh Parkes moves to inside centre with Steff Hughes coming in at outside centre. Aled Davies is named at scrum-half with Dan Jones taking up the fly-half mantle.
The replacements bench two internationals in Ryan Elias and Wyn Jones with Simon Gardiner offering tighthead cover. Lewis Rawlins returns from a foot injury to partner Will Boyde as loose forward cover.
Scrum-half Jonathan Evans makes a return to action after suffering a high ankle sprain in the victory over Southern Kings in South Africa back in November alongside Rhys Jones and Morgan Williams.
Meanwhile, Dragons boss Bernard Jackman has made six changes to his starting team that travel to West Wales to take on the PRO14 champions.
Just one change has been made to the backs, as wing Pat Howard replaces Ashton Hewitt, who suffered a neck strain last weekend, whilst five changes have been made to the forwards. The front-row sees loosehead prop Luke Garrett get the nod alongside hooker Liam Belcher and tighthead prop Nicky Thomas, who takes on his original team whilst on loan with the Dragons.
Lock Joe Davies returns to the starting XV after completing his return to play protocol, joining Dragons skipper Cory Hill in the second-row. The back-row also has one change to it as young flanker Taine Basham gets the nod making his debut for the Dragons and in the PRO14; Aaron Wainwright and James Benjamin make up the rest of the back-row.
Looking ahead to the Scarlets clash, Jackman commented: “Scarlets are just so confident at the moment, they just find a way to win. I haven’t seen their game against the Blues but I have seen the result and they just seem to be able to win those tight games.
“They are a team which is high in confidence and we have to freshen up and go there and be prepared to fend for our lives.”
He added: “Credit to Scarlets they are the form team in Wales and they will be challengers for the Guinness PRO14 championship title again and we will just see how we fare against them.”
The teams:
Scarlets: 15 Rhys Patchell, 14 Tom Prydie, 13 Steff Hughes, 12 Hadleigh Parkes, 11 Ioan Nicholas, 10 Dan Jones, 9 Aled Davies, 8 John Barclay, 7 James Davies, 6 Aaron Shingler, 5 David Bulbring, 4 Steve Cummins, 3 Samson Lee, 2 Ken Owens (c), 1 Rob Evans
Replacements: 16 Ryan Elias, 17 Wyn Jones, 18 Simon Gardiner, 19 Lewis Rawlins, 20 Will Boyde, 21 Jonathan Evans, 22 Rhys Jones, 23 Morgan Williams
Dragons: 15 Carl Meyer, 14 Pat Howard, 13 Sam Beard, 12 Jack Dixon, 11 Jared Rosser, 10 Arwel Robson, 9 Dan Babos, 8 James Benjamin, 7 Taine Basham, 6 Aaron Wainwright, 5 Cory Hill (c), 4 Joe Davies, 3 Nicky Thomas, 2 Liam Belcher, 1 Luke Garrett
Replacements: 16 Ellis Shipp, 17 Thomas Davies, 18 Lloyd Fairbrother, 19 Rynard Landman, 20 Robson Blake, 21 Sarel Pretorius, 22 Angus O’Brien, 23 Jarryd Sage
Date: Friday, January 5
Venue: Parc y Scarlets
Kick-off: 19:35 GMT
Referee: Marius Mitrea (Italy)
Assistant referees: Andrea Piardi (Italy), Wayne Davies (Wales)
TMO: Alan Falzone (Italy)
Edinburgh v Southern Kings
Scotland international centre Mark Bennett will make his eagerly anticipated debut against the Southern Kings at Myreside on Friday night.
Head coach Richard Cockerill has made five changes to the side that faced Glasgow Warriors in last weekend’s 1872 Cup fixture at Scotstoun.
Dougie Fife is the only alteration to an otherwise unchanged back-three. The winger – who touched down against Southern Kings in last month’s fixture in Port Elizabeth – joins Duhan van der Merwe on the wing, whilst Blair Kinghorn keeps his place at full-back.
In the midfield, 20-times capped Scotland international centre Bennett makes his first appearance for the club since joining in the summer, having fully recovered from a knee injury suffered in last year’s Six Nations. The 24-year-old is joined in midfield by the experienced Phil Burleigh.
In the front-row, prop Jordan Lay gets the nod at loosehead and packs down alongside Murray McCallum and hooker Stuart McInally, who once again captains the side.
The dynamic pairing of Ben Toolis and Grant Gilchrist form the second-row, whilst Magnus Bradbury returns to the starting XV to link up with Hamish Watson and Cornell du Preez in the back-row.
On his selection, Cockerill said: “Mark has worked incredibly hard to return from injury, so we’re delighted that he’s able to make his first start for the club in front of our supporters at Myreside.
“Southern Kings are a dangerous side in attack, and they will be well-rested having had a few week’s break over the festive period. It'll be a tough game, but we're looking forward to getting back to Myreside and putting in a good performance, and one that keeps us looking up the table."
Meanwhile, the Kings return from their winter break with a number of familiar faces included in the starting XV.
The team will be captained by Schalk Ferreira and will be chasing their first ever win in the PRO14. Yaw Penxe, Kurt Coleman, Berton Klaasen and Dries van Schalkwyk are some of the team’s key performers who will line out in the Scottish capital.
Top tackler Andisa Ntsila (132) did not travel with the squad on their last trip to Europe before heading back to South Africa for back to back derby games with the Cheetahs.
The teams:
Edinburgh: 15 Blair Kinghorn, 14 Dougie Fife, 13 Mark Bennett, 12 Phil Burleigh, 11 Duhan van der Merwe, 10 Jaco van der Walt, 9 Nathan Fowles, 8 Cornell du Preez, 7 Hamish Watson, 6 Magnus Bradbury, 5 Grant Gilchrist, 4 Ben Toolis, 3 Murray McCallum, 2 Stuart McInally (c), 1 Jordan Lay
Replacements: 16 Cameron Fenton, 17 Elliot Millar-Mills, 18 Matt Shields, 19 Fraser McKenzie, 20 Viliame Mata, 21 Sean Kennedy, 22 Chris Dean, 23 Damien Hoyland
Southern Kings: 15 Ntabeni Dukisa, 14 Yaw Penxe, 13 Berton Klaasen, 12 Martin du Toit, 11 Alshaun Bock, 10 Kurt Coleman, 9 Rudi van Rooyen, 8 Ruaan Lerm, 7 Martinus Burger, 6 Bredenkamp Eitel, 5 Dries van Schalkwyk, 4 Jurie van Vuuren, 3 Rossouw de Klerk, 2 Stephan Coetzee, 1 Schalk Ferreira (c)
Replacements: 16 Tango Balekile, 17 Njabulo Gumede, 18 Pieter Scholtz, 19 Lindokuhle Welemu, 20 Freddy Ngoza, 21 Gouws Rowan/Godlen Masimla, 22 Harlon Klaasen, 23 Masixole Banda
Date: Friday, January 5
Venue: Myreside
Kick-off: 19:35 GMT
Referee: Lloyd Linton (Scotland)
Assistant referees: Mike Adamson (Scotland), Sam Grove-White (Scotland)
TMO: Neil Paterson (Scotland)
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