Week three of the URC sees Leinster return to the RDS, now known as the “Laya Arena,” as they come up against Cardiff on Saturday evening.
URC Week 3 Fixtures
Friday, October 9
- Glasgow Warriors v Connacht, 19:45, TG4
- Dragons RFC v Ospreys, 19:45, Premier Sports 2
Saturday, October 10
- Bulls v Lions, 12:30, Premier Sports 1
- Stormers v Sharks, 15:00, Premier Sports 1
- Zebre v Edinburgh, 15:00, Premier Sports 2
- Scarlets v Benetton, 17:30, Premier Sports 2
- Ulster v Munster, 17:30, Premier Sports 1
- Leinster v Cardiff, 19:45, Premier Sports 1
URC Tips
- Glasgow –12 (v Connacht)
- Elliott Dee anytime try (Dragons v Ospreys)
- Kelly Mpeku anytime try (Bulls v Lions)
- Sharks to win (v Stormers)
- Edinburgh -7 (v Zebre)
- Scarlets -4 (v Benneton)
- Ulster to win (v Munster)
- Cardiff +21 (v Leinster)
Glasgow Warriors v Connacht – Friday, October 9, 19:45
Glasgow, who finished top of the URC last season, have started this campaign in top form. A six-point win over Munster and then a very entertaining 33-33 draw with Ulster last weekend. Glasgow showed plenty of flair in the Ulster game and recovered from 26-14 down to lead 33-26. Rory Darge and Sam Talakai would receive late yellow cards, and that would be costly as Ulster found the whitewash in the dying embers. They should learn plenty from that.
Connacht on the other hand started with a 15-29 defeat to the Stormers but got back to winning ways when they got the better of Benetton 22-19 at the Stadio Comunale di Monigo last Friday night. Injuries are a plenty for Connacht ahead of Friday night, with the likes of Dave Heffernan (calf), Will Connors (calf), Ben Murphy (ankle) and Harry West (hamstring) all unavailable. They will need to be at the top of their game to pose questions for Glasgow, and without several players it could be a tough assignment.
Selection: Glasgow –12 (10/11)
Dragons v Ospreys – Friday, October 9, 19:45
Dragons are one of the unbeaten teams in the URC this season and looked good when winning 38-26 last weekend. Elliott Dee has been in top form for the home side with three tries in the opening two games and could be interesting to be a try-scorer at any time in this game.
In terms of Ospreys, they will arrive at this game needing a morale-boosting victory after two defeats to open the new campaign. They were beaten 41-24 by the Sharks and then 35-19 by the Lions in the second game of the league. They may come back to form on home soil, but in terms of taking the form literally, then they have work to do.
Selection: Elliott Dee anytime try
Bulls v Lions – Saturday October 10 , 12:30
The Bulls will be looking to come back to top form following a 22-26 defeat to Munster at Thomond Park last time out. They made mistakes and did leave plenty of room for improvement, though. There is a chance that the Bulls can welcome back some big names for the Juksei Derby. The likes of Gerhard Steenekamp, Cameron Hanekom, Canan Moodie and Handre Pollard are all expected to be available.
The Lions are arriving here on top form following a victory last weekend over the Ospreys 35-19. They were down by two at half-time, but a second-half blitz was enough to seal the victory at Ellis Park. Kelly Mpeku was one of the star performers with two tries, and he could be the one to watch here again.
Selection: Kelly Mpeku anytime try
Stormers v Sharks – Saturday October 10, 15:00
Stormers will need to try and increase the intensity against the Sharks as they arrive back on home soil. They faced Edinburgh last time, and the game was quite flat and lacking scores, with Edinburgh ultimately winning 17-13 in the end. Stormers struggled at lineout time, and they will need to have that issue rectified ahead of Saturday.
Sharks looked more polished in their performance against the reigning champions Leinster winning by 26-20 in Durban. It was nip and tuck early on, but the dominant scrum was what pushed the home side into the ascendancy. Eben Etzebeth and Andre Esterhuizen were exceptional in the game, and a similar performance here should yield another victory.
Selection: Sharks (9/4)
Zebre v Edinburgh – Saturday, October 10, 15:00
Zebre, who struggled in the URC, look like they will have a similar fate this time around too. They haven’t won a URC match since the 5th October 2025 when they got the better of Lions 22-20 and they look a side who are extremely short on confidence. They have conceded 40+ points in two games this campaign, and if they don’t shut the gaps defensively, then it’s going to be a long season for them.
Edinburgh are two from two to open the new season and victory away at Ulster was a standout performance from them. It was a scrappy game with the Stormers last time but they still managed to come out on top and will be looking to keep their 100% start to the campaign intact. Paul Hill and substitute Rory McHaffie would find the whitewash on the evening, with McHaffie scoring on his home debut. Edinburgh will look to up the pace once again, and that should be more than enough to go three from three this week.
Selection: Edinburgh -7 (10/11)
Scarlets v Benetton – Saturday, October 10, 17:30
This will be one of the games this weekend that could turn into more of a battle as both sides are at the wrong end of the table from where they may expect to be. There wasn’t much between these sides last season in the standings, and they look evenly matched here.
Scarlets have started off with two defeats from two games, while Benetton have done slightly better with one draw and one defeat from the opening two matches.
Scarlets have had a massive edge over Benetton in H2Hs at Parc y Scarlets of late; they have won the last eleven games in all competitions at home and the last time they were beaten was 41-17 back in September 2013. Home advantage looks to be key, and that will see Scarlets take their first success of the new season.
Selection: Scarlets -4 (10/11)
Ulster v Munster – Saturday, October 10, 17:30
This game has the potential to be one of the games of the weekend as Munster travel north to take on Ulster at Affidea Stadium. Munster have done slightly better of the pair in the opening couple of weekends, with one win and one defeat, whereas Ulster will be hoping home advantage can get their opening win of this season.
As we mentioned when we looked at Edinburgh earlier, Ulster grabbed a late draw from nowhere in that game. The issue with Ulster this season, according to Nick Timoney, is that they “need to put 80 minutes together”. Glimpses of expansive rugby, but they haven’t been able to put it all together for 80 mins yet. Ulster are aware of the intensity of an Interpro and will be looking to get the fans behind them in what will likely be a cacophony of noise.
Munster have a solid record in the last few years when they face Ulster. They have won two of the last battles with Ulster. A 15-14 win on New Year’s Day 2023 and also a Christmas victory in 2024 when they won another titanic battle 22-19. Munster will be without Diarmuid Kilgallen (hamstring), Michael Milne (ankle) and Fineen Wycherley (shoulder), but they have plenty of talent that can cause Ulster an issue or two.
The Glasgow result will no doubt inspire Ulster, and with the home crowd behind them, it should push them over the line.
Selection: Ulster (53/100)
Leinster v Cardiff – Saturday, October 10, 19:45
The dawn of a new era for Leinster as they return to the redeveloped RDS, now known as the “Laya Arena,” for a URC clash with Cardiff. A bumper crowd will likely be expected as Leinster return to home soil. The capacity is up to 20,600, with the new Angelsea stand holding 6,775. Leo Cullen is really looking forward to it, with comments recently: “You want a proper club ground, with a proper club feel, that’s the big thing,” he said.
In terms of form, the reigning champions have lost their opening two games against Lions and Sharks and will be looking to get their first win of the season this weekend. The home record against Cardiff at home is exceptional, as Cardiff have never won away at Leinster in a run that stretches back to 2009. The lineup will be key as no doubt many of the Internationals for Leinster will start to return. Mistakes were made in those opening two games in South Africa, and they will need to up their game, but the redeveloped stadium and fans behind them should spur them on.
Cardiff will make their way to Dublin full of confidence after two victories in the opening two games and nine points from those two. A battle against Scarlets with a 21-15 win was followed by a high-scoring 40-27 win over Zebre. James Botham won man of the match last weekend, and a few other players also stepped up for Corniel van Zyl’s men. There were plenty of positives in attack but lots of work to do in defence.
While the atmosphere will be electric and Leinster will likely be victorious, it looks quite a big handicap, and you could see Cardiff stay within the margin.
Selection: Cardiff +21 (10/11)
URC Tips
- Glasgow –12 (v Connacht)
- Elliott Dee anytime try (Dragons v Ospreys)
- Kelly Mpeku anytime try (Bulls v Lions)
- Sharks to win (v Stormers)
- Edinburgh -7 (v Zebre)
- Scarlets -4 (v Benneton)
- Ulster to win (v Munster)
- Cardiff +21 (v Leinster)
