Connacht home leg to take place in Leinster

Connacht's Parker Pen Challenge Cup home quarter-final clash with Pontypridd will be taking place in Leinster.

The match will take place at Ericsson Park in Athlone on Saturday, January 11, with kick-off at 5.30 pm.

The second leg will take place the following Saturday, January 18, at Sardis Road in Pontypridd, with kick-off also timed for 5.30 pm as both legs will be televised live by the Welsh channel S4C.

It has also been decided to stage Connacht's Guinness inter-pro game against Leinster at Ericsson Park. This clash will take place at 5.30 pm on Friday, January 3.

Both teams will use this clash to prepare for their European campaigns, with Leinster meeting Swansea on January 10.

Meanwhile, the winners of the Connacht/Pontypridd quarter-final will play either Stade Francais or former Irish manager Warren Gatland's Wasps in the semi-finals.

On the other side of the draw, Saracens meet Newcastle, while former Heineken Cup winners Bath take on French side Montabaun, who are competing in only their second season in Europe.

Montabaun and Connacht are the only two of the Parker Pen Challenge Cup quarter-finals not to have yet played in the Heineken Cup.