The United Rugby Championship returns and we enter the hottest phase of the tournament, which with six days to go sees 10 teams competing for 5 places in the playoffs. In fact, with Leinster, Bulls and Glasgow Warriors on the run, Munster and Ospreys only have 10 points. And in the middle, just outside the area that is worth the post season, there are Benetton Treviso and Connacht, who will compete on Saturday in Monigo.
The Venetians, who also reached second place this season, are returning from a difficult period and a series of defeats which saw them slip to tenth place, on 33 points just like the Irish. The playoff zone is just one point away and fourth place is just six points awaybut now Marco Bortolami’s boys can no longer afford missteps, and certainly not against a direct competitor like Connacht.
There Galway team is fresh from the ugly home defeat against the Lions, but before that it had won three consecutive victories which had relaunched its playoff ambitions. Among the Irish to watch Diarmuid Kilgallen And Kaolin Bladetop scorer with 5 tries scored so far, as well as Cathal Fordewho easily pierces opposing defenses with the ball in his hand.
Returning to the playoff race, Bortolami’s words on the eve of Connacht are clear. “For some weeks I have been repeating this thing: the fight will be open until the end. We certainly preferred to have a few more points after last Saturday’s match because it was within our reach and that hurts us a lot. But we have to use this in the next games, because we should have won against Connacht anyway and in the following rounds. In the big picture it doesn’t change much, even if it puts some more pressure on us. But we must use it in a positive way to give the best of ourselves.” said the green and white coach.
