After two mixed weekends of Champions Cup action, the Irish provinces turn their attention back towards the BKT United Rigby Championship over the festive period, where two big rounds of Interprovincial games take centre stage.
It starts on Friday night in Belfast, where Ulster will be looking to build on their best performance of the season. Dan McFarland's side were impressive 31-15 winners against Racing 92 in Belfast, and this week they welcome Connacht to Kingspan Stadium for their traditional pre-Christmas derby.
Munster and Leinster have a little longer to wait for their showdown, with the sides facing off at Thomond Park on Tuesday (St Stephen's Day).
ONLINE
We'll have live blogs of both Interpros from Kingspan Stadium and Thomond Park, as well as reports and reaction for both games.
TV
Munster v Leinster is live on RTÉ2 and RTÉ Player on St Stephen's Day, with coverage getting under way at 7pm.
TG4 will be showing live coverage of Ulster v Connacht (Friday 22 December), while all games are shown live on URC.tv.
RADIO
Listen to live commentary of Ulster v Connacht on RTÉ Radio 1 Extra on Friday 22 December, while RTÉ Radio 1 will have full commentary from Thomond Park on 26 December when Munster face Leinster
WEATHER
It's expected to be a very windy night in Belfast for Ulster v Connacht, with a chance of some light rain, and temperatures of around 10C.
The early forecast for St Stephen's Day suggests it will stay dry for Munster v Leinster, with a mild afternoon becoming very cold by kick-off time at 7.35.
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While both sides come into the game off the back of successive URC defeats, Ulster appear to be in a better place overall thanks to a morale-boosting Champions Cup win against Racing 92 a week ago.
Having started the season well, Connacht head into the Christmas block of games on a four-game losing run in all competitions, the most recent being a 55-36 defeat at the hands of Saracens last week.
Pete Wilkins side have had the edge in recent meetings between the two, winning their Round 3 derby at the Sportsground back in November, as well as a URC quarter-final in Belfast in May. A win on Friday night for the western province would be their first three-in-a-row over Ulster since 2018.
The pair have identical records so far in the URC this season, with four wins and three defeats from seven games, but Ulster are a point ahead of eighth-place Connacht courtesy of picking up one extra bonus-point.
Both sides are close to full-strength for the derby. Ulster will be without the injured pair Rob Herring and Billy Burns, but are otherwise strong with Iain Henderson and Stuart McCloskey leading their World Cup contingent.
Connacht, meanwhile, have been able to bring Mack Hansen back from injury, while Bundee Aki and Finlay Bealham are also selected in a strong starting XV.
Ulster: Mike Lowry; Rob Baloucoune, James Hume, Stuart McCloskey, Jacob Stockdale; Jake Flannery, John Cooney; Andy Warwick, Tom Stewart, Marty Moore; Kieran Treadwell, Iain Henderson (capt); Matty Rea, Sean Reffell, Nick Timoney
Replacements: John Andrew, Steven Kitshoff, Tom O'Toole, Al O'Connor, Dave Ewers, Nathan Doak, Jude Postlethwaite, Will Addison
Connacht: Mack Hansen; Shayne Bolton, Tom Farrell, Bundee Aki, Byron Ralston; Jack Carty (capt), Caolin Blade; Denis Buckley, Tadgh McElroy, Finlay Bealham; Darragh Murray, Joe Joyce; Cian Prendergast, Shamus Hurley-Langton, Sean O'Brien
Replacements: Dave Heffernan, Peter Dooley, Jack Aungier, Gavin Thornbury, Conor Oliver, Michael McDonald, JJ Hanrahan, Shane Jennings
Referee: Eoghan Cross (IRFU)
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Games between Munster and Leinster don't often need kindling, but the news of RG Snyman's future transfer up to Leo Cullen's side next season has added another layer to an already intriguing game.
It feels like the rivalry between the two sides is as healthy as it's been for several years now. After a long period of Leinster dominance in this fixture, the last three meetings of the sides have all been one-score games, the latest of which was a cracking Interpro at a sold-out Aviva Stadium in November.
The annual St Stephen's Day meeting at Thomond Park is always a big draw, and with this game having also sold-out a fortnight ago, it's all set up to be a full-blooded derby in Limerick.
Munster's URC semi-final win against Leinster last May was a significant moment for Graham Rowntree's side, but they'll be all too aware of their poor home record against their rivals: Leinster have won on each of their last four visits to Thomond Park, and correcting that will be a huge motivation for the hosts.
They'll have to overcome a frustrating run of results to do that, however. A draw and a defeat in the Champions Cup pool stage means they have a point to prove, as they look to solidify their place in the top four of the URC.
For Leinster, it's been relatively plain sailing since their Round 1 defeat to Glasgow. Eight wins in a row in all competitions have sent them clear at the top of the URC heading into this round of games, and in an ideal position to get a top seed in the Champions Cup knockouts.
Team news: Friday 12pm
Referee: Andy Brace (IRFU)
