Tommy Bowe gets his first start of the season for Ulster when they travel to Zebre in the chase for a bonus-point win in the Stadio Sergio Lanfranchi this afternoon.

Munster 47 Zebre 0: From as early as the 12th minute when Leinster referee Dudley Phillips harshly awarded a penalty try against the hapless Italian side Zebre at Thomond Park last night, a bonus point, runaway win for Munster was a cast iron certainty. 

Zebre 34 Connacht 51: Connacht are preparing to step it up as their season becomes considerably tougher with the visit of the Ospreys next up in the Galway Sportsground.

A fifth bonus-point win is the target for Connacht in this evening’s Pro 12 fixture with Zebre in Italy (4.30 Irish time). Sitting level on 45 points with Ulster at the top of the table, Pat Lam knows every point will count in their bid for Champions Cup rugby next season.

Zebre 12 Munster 16: It wasn’t pretty and Anthony Foley admitted as much, but Munster’s head coach believes his side will consider Saturday’s nervy Pro12 victory at the Stadio Sergio Lanfranchi as ‘as a good win.’

Zebre 10 Connacht 40: It has been a season like no others. With a new record of 10 wins and currently leaders in the disciplinary stakes, Connacht will still be fighting on the last day of the Guinness Pro12 season for Champions Cup rugby.

Guiness Pro12

Following the disappointment of last Sunday’s home defeat to Newport Gwent Dragons, Leinster coach Matt O’Connor has made a total of seven changes to his starting line-up for tonight’s Pro12 encounter against Zebre at the RDS.

Connacht’s first All Black, Mils Muliaina, makes his debut for the province tonight when Connacht host Zebre at the Galway Sportsground (7.35pm).

Connacht 25 Zebre 16

Pat Lam has a hard act to follow when his Connacht team take to the field in today’s Rabodirect Pro 12 opener against Italian visitors Zebre (5pm).

Recent performances in the Heineken Cup excepted, it has been a poor campaign by Munster’s exalted standards and it will be a whole lot worse should they become the first team to lose to Zebre in their last match of the season at the Stadio XXV Aprile in Parma this evening.

Zebre 22 Leinster 41

RABODIRECT PRO12

Connacht 25 Zebre 20

Failure to manage a bonus point in last weekend’s loss to Harlequins has made it mathematically impossible to catch pool runners-up Biarritz, but pride and a third Heineken Cup win are at stake for Connacht this evening.

Leinster 37 Zebre 7

No matter what way Joe Schmidt and the other three provincial coaches look at it, this is one of those weeks where there is no right or wrong when it comes to the troublesome business of team selection.

Munster 29 Zebre 3

It seems the RaboDirect Pro12 this season is all about development.

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.

Connacht are determined to finish their home RaboDirect Pro 12 season on a high when they host Aironi at the Sportsground this evening. Having picked up 15 points in their last six matches, Connacht can post a third successive win and leapfrog Dragons and Treviso.

The inclusion of prop Denis Buckley, who joins the front-row in place of the injured Brett Wilkinson, is the only change Eric Elwood has made for his side’s PRO12 meeting with Aironi in the Sportsground tomorrow (5pm).

Ulster will have an anxious wait before knowing whether explosive flanker Stephen Ferris will be available for next Sunday’s European shoot-out with Munster at Thomond Park.

It wasn’t exactly the script David Wallace was looking for on his return from a long term injury, but the veteran backrower was nevertheless upbeat despite Munster’s shock defeat in Viadana yesterday.

Munster will welcome David Wallace back to the fold at some stage of tomorrow’s RaboDirect Pro12 clash with Aironi at Stadio Zaffanella in Viadana.

ULSTER successfully manoeuvred the first part of their Heineken Cup back-to-back clashes with Aironi at Ravenhill last night with a bonus-point victory in Pool Four.

BALLYNAHINCH’S Paddy McAllister gets a rare start when he lines out at loose-head as Ulster tackle Italian visitors Aironi in the first of important back-to-back Heineken Cup fixtures at Ravenhill this evening.

BALLYNAHINCH’S Paddy McAllister gets a rare start when he lines out at loose-head as Ulster tackle Italian visitors Aironi in the first of important back-to-back Heineken Cup fixtures at Ravenhill this evening.

Italy coach Nick Mallett has made 11 changes to his starting line-up for Saturday’s World Cup warm-up match against Scotland at Murrayfield.

Italy coach Nick Mallett has named a 30-man squad for the World Cup in New Zealand.

LEINSTER reclaimed second spot in the Magners League with a 20-8 victory over Aironi on Saturday afternoon but of greater satisfaction to head coach Joe Schmidt was the fact that the province left the Stadio Luigi Zaffanella without any injuries.

LEINSTER coach Joe Schmidt is taking few chances as he takes his side to Italy to face Magners League basement side Aironi at the Stadio Luigi Zaffanella today.

IT was the Italian hoodoo all over again as Connacht slumped to a 25-13 defeat away to Aironi on Saturday evening for their third Magners League defeat on Italian soil.

ERIC ELWOOD has kept faith with the squad that has racked up five wins on the trot at home as Connacht look to record an away victory over Aironi this afternoon.

CONNACHT are targeting five home wins in a row for the first time since 2005 against Aironi in the Sportsgrounds tonight (7.45pm).

ULSTER struggled to put away Italian visitors Aironi at Ravenhill last night despite racing into a 15-point lead in as many minutes.

MUNSTER maintained their stranglehold on top spot in the Magners League with a scrappy victory at the Stadio Luigi Zaffanella yesterday but the win was tainted by the loss of Denis Hurley to a knee injury.