So Andy Farrell opted to play safe last weekend with his selection against Scotland? Really?

Connacht left this season’s Champions Cup with their heads held high after Andy Friend’s side recovered from a 21-point deficit to lead, only to be denied two minutes from time in Montpellier.

Connacht coach Andy Friend says he will field a full strength team in his side’s final Champions Cup game of the season against Montpellier despite already being out of the running to qualify for the latter stages of the competition.

Simon Zebo limped off eight minutes into Racing 92’s Top 14 victory over Clermont at the weekend, giving boss Laurent Travers an injury headache ahead of Sunday’s Champions Cup return against Munster.

Quinn Roux’s hopes of returning to the Irish side for the start of the Six Nations have been dashed with the 29-year-old having to undergo surgery for a hand injury.

Will Addison returns from a four-week suspension for Ulster who are on a mission to avenge last year’s home loss to Connacht.

Robin Copeland’s last-gasp try rescued a 27-24 win from the jaws of defeat as Connacht pipped Gloucester in a dramatic Heineken Champions Cup clash at the Sportsground.

Connacht’s survival hopes in the Heineken Champions Cup may depend on a superb home record which has seen them lose just one of 14 games at the Sportsground in Europe in the past five years.

French rugby chiefs have toughened their salary cap regulations following a court ruling in its favour.

Paul Boyle missed the cut for Connacht last week, but he wants to take that frustration out on Gloucester as the province seek to rescue their Champions Cup hopes on Saturday.

Connacht, for a team which has won almost 45% of its matches in the Heineken Champions Cup, still has a lot to learn how to compete in Europe’s premier tournament.

No team in Europe has played as many matches in the Challenge Cup as Connacht

Friend, who coached Harlequins from 2005-08, said his players fell for the ruse when Gloucester’s lineout and scrum tactics were apparently left on a whiteboard for them to see the day before a game at Kingsholm.

Tom Farrell’s hopes of playing in next year’s Six Nations have been dealt a blow with the Connacht centre set to be sidelined until the New Year with a fractured shoulder.

Stuart Lancaster believes the disappointment felt by Ireland’s World Cup contingent can spur the four provinces to memorable heights in Europe, just as it did their English counterparts four years ago.

Connacht’s stand-in captain Quinn Roux said that while few outside of their squad believed they would win at Stade Ernest-Wallon, the team were bitterly disappointed not to secure victory in Toulouse.

There are three changes to the team that defeated Ospreys.

Connacht forward Eoghan Masterson, after finally making his Champions Cup debut last weekend, is determined to create more history in France tomorrow when they take on Toulouse.

Not for the first time, Europe has proved the perfect antidote for pining Irish players looking for solace after the woes of an underwhelming World Cup campaign.

At the risk of redefining the delusional practice of clutching at straws, perhaps there is something to be said after all for making an early exit from the World Cup.

A nerveless Conor Fitzgerald penalty 13 minutes from time clinched European victory for Connacht as Andy Friend’s side battled bravely to launch their Champions Cup campaign with an impressive Sportsground win.

It would be understandable if Connacht’s Sean O’Brien was feeling sorry for himself this week as he underwent surgery for a shoulder injury suffered within minutes of coming on last weekend against Leinster in his first game in almost a year.

Keith Earls will make his first Munster appearance of the season in tomorrow's Champions Cup opener against the Ospreys.

The Irish provincial video analysts will be busily plugging into footage of the French Top 14 ahead of this season’s European Champions Cup. All four representatives have been handed French assignments over the next three months - with Connacht getting a double helping.

Connacht coach Andy Friend has warned his side can’t afford to get into an “arm wrestle” against Montpellier in their return to the Heineken Champions Cup this weekend.

Munster have moved to ease their fly-half problems by adding academy number 10 Ben Healy to their Heineken Champions Cup squad.

Here's the route Ireland's provinces must navigate to emerge from their Champions Cup pools.

If Leinster feel any ill will towards Saracens, then it has been well concealed.

Your round-up of all the #RWC2019 news and more

Marseille missed the chance to go top of Ligue 1 as their 1-1 home draw with Montpellier ended with three players sent off after a stoppage-time bust-up.

The importance of Munster getting a good start to their Champions Cup campaign was underlined by the release of the pool fixtures this morning.

Ronan O’Gara is still getting his bearings, and no surprise there.

It is understood that Munster are interested in signing Mathieu Bastareaud for the start of the new season.

Sweden pulled off a shock 2-1 victory over Germany in Rennes to reach the semi-finals of the Women's World Cup.

Munster’s new-look brains trust will have little time to brace for their first intensive exam on the back of a Heineken Champions Cup draw in Lausanne yesterday which did the province few favours.

Munster have been left holding the short straw for next season's Heineken Champions Cup with the two-time champions plunged into the clichéd 'Pool of Death' after Wednesday's draw in Lausanne.

Munster received a tough draw against reigning champions Saracens in next season's Champions Cup pool stages.

Simon Lewis,

In the public’s yearning for a natural goalscoring successor to Ireland hitman Robbie Keane, the name of Adam Idah has lasted longer than most contenders.

There will be a strange dynamic surrounding Saturday’s Guinness PRO14 semi-final between Leinster and Munster at the RDS. It’s been a difficult ten days for both Irish provinces but for different reasons.

Having planned for life beyond rugby for some time now, it is fitting Duncan Casey bade adieu to the sport with three games still to play in his final campaign in professional rugby.

Peter Jackson gets over the gain line, behind the headline

Munster touched down in the Scottish capital yesterday ready to make their European pedigree tell against a talented, up-and-coming team lacking their experience of closing out big games such as today’s Heineken Champions Cup quarter-final.

A stranger perusing the team sheets in advance of this afternoon’s opening Champions Cup quarter-final might be forgiven for thinking that a Currie Cup fixture has been transported from Cape Town to Edinburgh.