Pat Lam confident Connacht ready for the Kingsholm ‘cauldron’

A first home semi-final is the prize for Connacht if they overcome this evening’s Challenge Cup quarter-final opponents Gloucester at Kingsholm.

Connacht are the underdogs — when aren’t they? — against the No 1 seeds and English Premiership favourites. Although David Humphrey’s Gloucester are having an erratic season and will not qualify via this route for Champions Cup rugby, they are more than a match for most clubs on their day. They are also pinning their hopes on claiming European silverware as their route to the Champions Cup play-offs against the seventh-seeded Pro 12 side later in the season.

The Pro 12 has always been Connacht’s priority this season, but having qualified for this stage of the competition, Pat Lam’s squad will not want to squander the opportunity of advancing to the next stage.