Connacht face tough task as Edinburgh name big guns

Connacht v Edinburgh, At the Sportsground, 6.30pm:Five points from four games is not where Connacht wanted to be. But no need to panic yet and with Ulster below them on the table, Michael Bradley's team have at least some slim bragging rights.

But Bradley has announced an unchanged starting 15 for the Magners Celtic League clash with Edinburgh at the Sportsground tonight and recalls Adrian Flavin and Andrew Farley to the bench, both having recovered from injury.

Farley, who is Australian born and played for Ireland A in the Churchill Cup, is back after five weeks out, while Flavin has been missing for three weeks.

Connacht having spent the previous three rounds of the competition on the road, this is a welcome return home for them - they last played in Galway on the opening day of the season. Victory over the Dragons on that occasion should give them a good feeling walking across the dog track, although in the corresponding fixture last season the sides finished at 22-22.

While Bradley is glad to have two such influential players back he is well aware of the threat posed by an Edinburgh side with a full complement of internationals returning.

"We understand that Edinburgh will have all their internationals back," said the former Ireland scrumhalf. "We played Cardiff two weeks ago, who had a number of their key players back. In that game against Cardiff we were frustrated because we played very well.

"We've looked at the Cardiff game and Glasgow game before that and we realise again that if we take care of our own business irrespective of whom we play we can win the matches."

Allister Hogg returns to captain Edinburgh at blindside flanker, joining a pack that boasts an all-Scotland international front row with new signing and hooker Ross Ford joining props Gavin Kerr and Craig Smith at the coalface.

Another international pair, Hugo Southwell (fullback) and Simon Webster (wing) return to the back three for a game that Scotland scrumhalf Mike Blair expects to be tough.

"A lot of the Magners League clubs have strengthened over the summer and Connacht are one of them," observed Blair. "They've got Tim Donnelly, who is a pretty handy player at stand-off, so they've recruited well and they will be tough opposition."

Connacht are due another win, although, against a team laced with quality players, it is difficult to see this as being the night it happens.

CONNACHT:G Duffy; O Treviranus, M Deane, A Wynne, K Matthews; T Donnelly, C McPhillips; B Wilkinson, J Fogarty, R Morris; M Swift, D Gannon; R Ofisa, J O'Connor, J Muldoon (capt). Replacements: A Flavin, B McGovern, A Farley, M McCarthy, C O'Loughlin, P Durcan, D Yapp.

EDINBURGH:H Southwell; A Turnbull, B Cairns, N De Luca, S Webster; D Blair, M Blair; G Kerr, R Ford, C Smith; C Hamilton, B Gissing; A Hogg (capt), R Rennie, S Cross. Replacements: A Kelly, A Allori, M Mustchin, R Reid, B Meyer, A Warnock, J Houston.

Last meeting:Edinburgh 49 Connacht 31, Murrayfield.

Leading point scorers:Connacht: T Donnelly 49 pts. Edinburgh: P Godman 21 pts.

Leading try scorers:No player on either side has scored more than one.

Referee:J Jones (WRU)

Verdict: Edinburgh win.