The final round of the Guinness PRO14 takes place this weekend but with several teams still having games in hand, the battle for spots in Europe’s elite competition may not be settled over the next few days.
In Conference A, Ospreys will secure the third spot should they beat group winners Leinster but defeat opens the door for Glasgow Warriors ahead of Sunday’s potentially crucial clash with fourth-placed Dragons.
Conference B is just as exciting, with Scarlets needing to beat Connacht on Monday night to seal the crucial third spot, but they will be keeping a close eye on the result of Cardiff Blues who are just three points behind and take on Edinburgh at the same time.
History will also be made in Round 16 when Hollie Davidson takes charge of the match between Munster and Benetton. Joy Neville will serve as Television Match Official, making this the first time in top-tier men's professional club rugby fixture that both the referee and TMO roles are filled by female officials.
Friday - Munster v Benetton
Johann van Graan’s men are already in the final and wrap up the Conference phase against winless Benetton, who was the last Italian team to beat Munster in any competition seven and a half years ago.
Their last two meetings have been settled by just two points and it took a last-gasp drop goal from JJ Hanrahan to give a much-changed Munster side an 18-16 victory at the end of January.
The Munstermen extended their winning run in the PRO14 to five games with last Friday’s 28-10 victory over Scarlets thanks to tries from Gavin Coombes, Shane Daly, Niall Scannell and Kevin O’Byrne.
Benetton was in sight of a first victory of the PRO14 season on Sunday when they took an 11-point lead approaching half-time, only to succumb to a 29-14 defeat against the Cardiff Blues.
Friday - Ulster v Zebre
South Africa back-row Marcell Coetzee scored four tries in a 57-14 victory over bottom-of-the-table Zebre when Ulster travelled to Parma in mid-November.
Ulster has already guaranteed the runners-up spot on the back of 13 wins and just two losses, both of which came against Leinster this year.
Dan McFarland’s side is unbeaten against Italian sides since losing 27-23 to Zebre three and a half years ago and they have won all seven home meetings against Friday’s opponents.
Zebre lost a high-scoring encounter with Leinster last weekend and are four points behind fifth-placed Dragons, who have a game in hand.
Friday - Leinster v Ospreys
Leinster’s last match before next week’s final comes against Ospreys, a team they have beaten in their previous four meetings.
Tries from James Tracy, Dave Kearney, Peter Dooley and Scott Penny gave them a 26-7 victory at the Liberty Stadium last time out.
Ospreys head to the Irish capital hoping to avoid a fourth successive defeat following losses to Ulster, Dragons and Glasgow in the last three weeks, but they may need a win to guarantee the third spot.
That will be a tough task as Leinster have not lost to a Welsh region since a trip to Llanelli two and a half years ago.
Sunday - Dragons v Glasgow
There could be plenty at stake in the Welsh capital where Glasgow visit the Principality Stadium for the first time needing a win to maintain their bid for a top-three finish, although even that will not suffice should Ospreys upset champions Leinster on Friday evening.
Glasgow is chasing a third successive win for the first time in over a year thanks to victories over Zebre and Ospreys in the last couple of weeks, but it could be a close encounter if previous meetings are anything to go by.
In December, Glasgow fly-half Brandon Thomas missed a simple conversion with the last kick of the game to hand Dragons a 23-22 victory at Scotstoun to square the series at two wins apiece and one draw in their last five games.
Dragons failed to follow up their win against Ospreys from a fortnight ago with a narrow defeat against Ulster last weekend which extinguished their hopes of competing at Europe’s top table.
Monday - Scarlets v Connacht
Monday night has a thrilling double-header in Conference B which could determine the European places for next season.
Scarlets’ two-game winning run ended in a 28-10 defeat at Munster last Friday but they host Connacht in confident mood having won their last couple of matches against the Irish province, the latest a 20-14 victory at a rainy and wind-swept Sportsground thanks to two tries from Ryan Conbeer.
Connacht has won their last four games outside Ireland but narrow back-to-back defeats by Munster and Edinburgh have left them facing three successive losses for the first time in 14 months.
The Irishmen, who have already secured the runners-up spot, have also not won in Llanelli in the PRO14 since a victory at the old Stradey Park more than 16 years ago.
Monday - Cardiff v Edinburgh
Edinburgh may be in fifth place but they still have a mathematical chance of bagging a top-three spot with two games in hand on Monday’s opponents and Scarlets.
The Scots also have an excellent recent record against Cardiff having won the last three, the latest coming four months ago when tries from Lee-Roy Atalifo and Dave Cherry wrapped up an impressive 18-0 victory at Murrayfield.
Not only have Edinburgh dominated Cardiff lately, but they have also won on their last four visits to Wales, so Richard Cockerill’s side will be in good heart.
Blues bounced back from successive defeats with a 29-14 win at Benetton to move to within three points of third-placed Scarlets, giving added significance to Monday’s matches.
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