Brive 21 Connacht 18: Connacht’s European hopes hang in the balance after what coach Pat Lam termed as “probably their worst game” this season.

Cardiff Blues 20 Connacht 16: Connacht’s poor record at the Arms Park continued last evening when they lost their grip on the lead of the Guinness Pro12 to a dogged Cardiff Blues.

La Rochelle 20 Connacht 30: European Chellenge Cup Pool 2: A "bit of X-factor" combined with a huge team effort is what vLam credits for Connacht’s dramatic four-try bonus win over La Rochelle, which sealed their quarter-final place as last seeds in this season’s European Challenge Cup.

Guinness Pro12

Ronan Loughney remains a doubt for Connacht's sold-out meeting with Munster on New Year's Day.

Leinster 21 Connacht 11

Bayonne 27 Connacht 29

Nine workers at a centre for people with intellectual disabilities, which is being investigated by gardaí after the sudden death of a resident in 2012, have been taken "off duty" after separate serious abuse allegations.

GUINNESS PRO12:

Connacht Rugby 48 La Rochelle 12

Connacht Rugby 48 La Rochelle 12

Connacht 24 Cardiff 24

Glasgow Warriors 39 Connacht 21

Connacht 10 Leinster 9

Aras Attracta is home to nearly a hundred people. It’s in Swinford in County Mayo. It has a website, part of the much larger HSE website.

Ireland’s health watchdog uncovered serious issues about how residents were treated at a HSE-run facility for adults with intellectual disabilities after being informed by whistleblowers of a death at the unit.

Connacht 15 Cardiff 22

Connacht 11 Edinburgh 7

RABODIRECT PRO12

Leinster 16 Connacht 13

Connacht Head Coach Pat Lam has made a number of changes to the team for their second away trip of the season.

RABODIRECT PRO12

RABODIRECT PRO12

Connacht 22 Ospreys 10

Biarritz Olympique 17 Connacht 0

Connacht 23 Edinburgh 24

Ospreys 26 Connacht 9

Ulster 25 Connacht 0

Connacht 34 Leinster 6

Connacht 34 Leinster 6

Connacht 9 Cardiff Blues 13

So who is Ronan Loughney? The Connacht prop emerged from relative obscurity this season and has anchored the Westerners’ scrum in what has arguably been the province’s most consistent season since rugby went professional.

Connacht prop Ronan Loughney is ready for another taste of Test rugby after making his Ireland debut in the 42-10 defeat by New Zealand last weekend.

A late Felipe Contepomi penalty handed defeat to an Ireland XV at Kingsholm on the eve of their three-Test tour to New Zealand.

Connacht signed off with a best place finish in this season’s RaboDirect Pro12 League but Eric Elwood won’t be happy with this performance.

Undeserving may be, but Connacht’s late steal at the death against Aironi on Saturday provided the Irish province with their first three-in-a-row of victories since 2002.

Newport Gwent Dragons 19 Connacht 27

It will be small compensation to Connacht’s Eric Elwood following yet another narrow defeat but Declan Kidney left the Sportsgrounds on Saturday night with an encouraging glimpse of Ireland’s front-row future.

Former Irish and Munster scrum-half Michael Bradley has ruled himself out of the Munster job.

Connacht 26 Edinburgh 13

ECSTATIC and joyous scenes in the Galway Sportsground last night, as Connacht finally delivered on their promise to turn their poor run of results around.

Eric Elwood has made one change to his team for Connacht’s final Heineken Cup game of the season against Harlequins at the Sportsground tomorrow night (8pm).

CONNACHT bid to end a miserable run of form away to Aironi this afternoon.

CONNACHT boss Eric Elwood admitted it was “difficult to find positives” after his side were edged out by Gloucester on Saturday and remain without a win in the Heineken Cup.