Round 2
10/11/12 Sep, Aironi Rugby v Ulster, Stadio Zaffanella
10/11/12 Sep, Edinburgh v Munster, Murrayfield
10/11/12 Sep, Leinster v Blues, Royal Dublin Society
10/11/12 Sep, Dragons v Warriors, Rodney Parade
10/11/12 Sep, Ospreys v Benetton Treviso, Liberty Stadium
10/11/12 Sep, Scarlets v Connacht, Parc y Scarlets

Round 3
17/18/19 Sep, Benetton Treviso v Leinster, Stadio di Monigo
17/18/19 Sep, Blues v Dragons, Cardiff City Stadium
17/18/19 Sep, Warriors v Connacht, Firhill Stadium
17/18/19 Sep, Munster v Ospreys, Thomond Park Stadium
17/18/19 Sep, Scarlets v Aironi Rugby, Parc y Scarlets
17/18/19 Sep, Ulster v Edinburgh, Ravenhill

Round 4
24/25/26 Sep, Benetton Treviso v Blues, Stadio di Monigo
24/25/26 Sep, Connacht v Ulster, Sportsground
24/25/26 Sep, Edinburgh v Leinster, Murrayfield
24/25/26 Sep, Warriors v Munster, Firhill Stadium
24/25/26 Sep, Dragons v Scarlets, Rodney Parade
24/25/26 Sep, Ospreys v Aironi Rugby, Liberty Stadium

Round 5
1/2/3 Oct , Aironi Rugby v Edinburgh , Stadio Zaffanella
1/2/3 Oct , Blues v Connacht, Cardiff City Stadium
1/2/3 Oct , Leinster v Munster, Royal Dublin Society
1/2/3 Oct, Dragons v Benetton Treviso, Rodney Parade
1/2/3 Oct , Scarlets v Ospreys, Parc y Scarlets
1/2/3 Oct, Ulster v Warriors, Ravenhill

Round 6
22/23/24 Oct, Blues v Scarlets, Cardiff City Stadium
22/23/24 Oct, Connacht v Leinster, Sportsground
22/23/24 Oct, Edinburgh v Ulster, Murrayfield
22/23/24 Oct, Warriors v Ospreys, Firhill Stadium
22/23/24 Oct, Munster v Benetton Treviso, Thomond Park Stadium
22/23/24 Oct, Dragons v Aironi Rugby, Rodney Parade

Round 7
29/30/31 Oct, Aironi Rugby v Blues, Stadio Zaffanella
29/30/31 Oct, Benetton Treviso v Connacht, Stadio di Monigo
29/30/31 Oct, Leinster v Edinburgh, Royal Dublin Society
29/30/31 Oct, Ospreys v Dragons, Liberty Stadium
29/30/31 Oct, Scarlets v Warriors, Parc y Scarlets
29/30/31 Oct, Ulster v Munster, Ravenhill

Round 8
5/6/7 Nov, Edinburgh v Benetton Treviso, Murrayfield
5/6/7 Nov, Warriors v Aironi Rugby, Firhill Stadium
19/20/21 Nov, Blues v Ulster, Cardiff City Stadium
19/20/21 Nov, Connacht v Ospreys, Sportsground
19/20/21 Nov, Leinster v Dragons, Royal Dublin Society
19/20/21 Nov, Munster v Scarlets, Musgrave Park

Round 9
26/27/28 Nov, Aironi Rugby v Scarlets, Stadio Zaffanella
26/27/28 Nov, Benetton Treviso v Ulster, Stadio di Monigo
26/27/28 Nov, Blues v Warriors, Cardiff City Stadium
26/27/28 Nov, Edinburgh v Connacht, Murrayfield
26/27/28 Nov, Dragons v Munster, Rodney Parade
26/27/28 Nov, Ospreys v Leinster, Liberty Stadium

Round 10
3/4/5 Dec, Connacht v Aironi Rugby, Sportsground
3/4/5 Dec, Warriors v Benetton Treviso, Firhill Stadium
3/4/5 Dec, Munster v Blues, Thomond Park Stadium
3/4/5 Dec, Ospreys v Edinburgh, Liberty Stadium
3/4/5 Dec, Scarlets v Leinster, Parc y Scarlets
3/4/5 Dec, Ulster v Dragons, Ravenhill

Round 11
24/25/26 Dec, Benetton Treviso v Aironi Rugby, Stadio di Monigo
24/25/26 Dec, Connacht v Munster, Sportsground
24/25/26 Dec, Warriors v Edinburgh, Firhill Stadium
24/25/26 Dec, Dragons v Blues, Rodney Parade
24/25/26 Dec, Ospreys v Scarlets, Liberty Stadium
24/25/26 Dec, Ulster v Leinster, Ravenhill

Round 12
31 Dec, Aironi Rugby v Benetton Treviso, Stadio Zaffanella
31 Dec, Blues v Ospreys, Cardiff City Stadium
31 Dec, Edinburgh v Warriors, Murrayfield
31 Dec, Leinster v Connacht, Royal Dublin Society
31 Dec, Munster v Ulster, Thomond Park Stadium
31 Dec, Scarlets v Dragons, Parc y Scarlets

Round 13
7/8/9 Jan, Blues v Aironi Rugby, Cardiff City Stadium
7/8/9 Jan, Edinburgh v Scarlets, Murrayfield
7/8/9 Jan, Leinster v Ospreys, Royal Dublin Society
7/8/9 Jan, Munster v Warriors, Musgrave Park
7/8/9 Jan, Dragons v Connacht, Rodney Parade
7/8/9 Jan, Ulster v Benetton Treviso, Ravenhill

Round 14
11/12/13 Feb, Benetton Treviso v Munster, Stadio di Monigo
11/12/13 Feb, Connacht v Scarlets, Sportsground
11/12/13 Feb, Warriors v Blues, Firhill Stadium
11/12/13 Feb, Leinster v Aironi Rugby, Royal Dublin Society
11/12/13 Feb, Dragons v Edinburgh, Rodney Parade
11/12/13 Feb, Ospreys v Ulster, Liberty Stadium

Round 15
18/19/20 Feb, Aironi Rugby v Dragons, Stadio Zaffanella
18/19/20 Feb, Benetton Treviso v Ospreys, Stadio di Monigo
18/19/20 Feb, Blues v Leinster, Cardiff City Stadium
18/19/20 Feb, Connacht v Warriors, Sportsground
18/19/20 Feb, Munster v Edinburgh, Thomond Park Stadium
18/19/20 Feb, Scarlets v Ulster, Parc y Scarlets

Round 16
25/26/27 Feb, Aironi Rugby v Munster, Stadio Zaffanella
25/26/27 Feb, Warriors v Dragons, Firhill Stadium
25/26/27 Feb, Leinster v Benetton Treviso, Royal Dublin Society
25/26/27 Feb, Ospreys v Connacht, Liberty Stadium
25/26/27 Feb, Scarlets v Edinburgh, Parc y Scarlets
25/26/27 Feb, Ulster v Blues, Ravenhill

Round 17
4/5/6 Mar, Connacht v Benetton Treviso, Sportsground
4/5/6 Mar, Edinburgh v Blues, Murrayfield
4/5/6 Mar, Leinster v Scarlets, Royal Dublin Society
4/5/6 Mar, Munster v Dragons, Musgrave Park
4/5/6 Mar, Ospreys v Warriors, Liberty Stadium
4/5/6 Mar, Ulster v Aironi Rugby, Ravenhill

Round 18
25/26/27 Mar, Aironi Rugby v Connacht, Stadio Zaffanella
25/26/27 Mar, Blues v Munster, Cardiff City Stadium
25/26/27 Mar, Edinburgh v Ospreys, Murrayfield
25/26/27 Mar, Warriors v Ulster, Firhill Stadium
25/26/27 Mar, Dragons v Leinster, Rodney Parade
25/26/27 Mar, Scarlets v Benetton Treviso, Parc y Scarlets

Round 19
1/2/3 Apr , Aironi Rugby v Warriors, Stadio Zaffanella
1/2/3 Apr , Benetton Treviso v Dragons, Stadio di Monigo
1/2/3 Apr , Connacht v Edinburgh, Sportsground
1/2/3 Apr , Munster v Leinster, Thomond Park Stadium
1/2/3 Apr , Ospreys v Blues, Liberty Stadium
1/2/3 Apr , Ulster v Scarlets, Ravenhill

Round 20
15/16/17 Apr, Benetton Treviso v Warriors, Stadio di Monigo
15/16/17 Apr, Connacht v Blues, Sportsground
15/16/17 Apr, Edinburgh v Aironi Rugby, Murrayfield
15/16/17 Apr, Leinster v Ulster, Royal Dublin Society
15/16/17 Apr, Dragons v Ospreys, Rodney Parade
15/16/17 Apr, Scarlets v Munster, Parc y Scarlets

Round 21
22/23/24 Apr, Aironi Rugby v Leinster, Stadio Zaffanella
22/23/24 Apr, Blues v Benetton Treviso, Cardiff City Stadium
22/23/24 Apr, Edinburgh v Dragons, Murrayfield
22/23/24 Apr, Warriors v Scarlets, Firhill Stadium
22/23/24 Apr, Ospreys v Munster, Liberty Stadium
22/23/24 Apr, Ulster v Connacht, Ravenhill

Round 22
6/7/8 May, Aironi Rugby v Ospreys, Stadio Zaffanella
6/7/8 May, Benetton Treviso v Edinburgh , Stadio di Monigo
6/7/8 May, Leinster v Warriors, Royal Dublin Society
6/7/8 May, Munster v Connacht, Thomond Park Stadium
6/7/8 May, Dragons v Ulster, Rodney Parade
6/7/8 May, Scarlets v Blues, Parc y Scarlets

Semi-Finals
14/15/16 May, TBA
14/15/16 May, TBA

Final
28/29/30 May, TBA

In the first instance, we’ll be starting the build-up to the new Aviva Premiership and Magners League seasons.

Both of these competitions should hold their own degree of intrigue. The new Premiership sponsor might want to do things differently, Exeter Chiefs will grace the fields of top flight clubs, and there will be three live games on every weekend. The Italians are joining the Magners League, and all eyes will be focused on their opening battles, and every club in the UK will have players with one eye on the Rugby World Cup – now is the time to break into the international setup if they want to be in contention for selection this time next year.

Then it won’t be long before we’re watching Heineken Cup rugby again and looking ahead to the Autumn Internationals which take on additional importance with the World Cup looming.

We’re expanding our coverage here on The Rugby Blog, with more articles about Ireland, Wales and Scotland, more player interviews, more podcasts, more polls, more opinion and more discussion. We’ve had some great feedback on the new site design, and we’ll continue to make enhancements.

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New Features

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Coming up on The Rugby Blog

The site will be a little quieter for a few weeks whilst Hutch is in Uganda with the Tag Rugby Trust, but there will be a few articles as we keep things ticking over.

Then we’ll be starting the build up to the new season in earnest – it’s a long year ahead culminating in the Rugby World Cup, so stay with us for the duration as we cover the Guinness Premiership, Magners League, Heineken Cup, all the internationals, going off on the odd rant, sharing our opinions and keeping an eye on those players that could feature for the home countries in New Zealand.

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We’d really like to know your thoughts on the site, the new design, the ramblings we write or anything else you’d like to get off your chest. Suggestions for new features are always welcome, so again, please get in touch.

There are only a few weeks left until the Magners League will enter its first ever playoff phase, and as most sides welcome back their internationals, there’s a lot to play for.

I’m favouring home advantage in my predictions for this round, and I’m predicting wins for Munster and Leinster, even though they might have one eye on the Heineken Cup quarter-finals in a couple of weeks’ time.

The only Away side I’m predicting to win is the Ospreys, who have fly-half Dan Biggar back from injury, and should be too strong for a Dragons team that beat an under-strength Munster in the last round.

Cardiff Blues v Ulster: Cardiff Blues by 13
Edinburgh v Scarlets: Edinburgh by 8
Munster v Glasgow Warriors: Munster by 9
Leinster v Connacht Rugby: Leinster by 13
Gwent Dragons v Ospreys: Ospreys by 7

The two teams, Aironi Rugby and Benetton Treviso, will comprise of players from full Italian internationals down to the U20 squad, as well as some overseas players to add a bit of bite to them.

This can only be a hugely positive step forward for Italy. If you look at the current Italian domestic league, you’ll find that the majority of players are part-time rugby players and have 9 to 5 jobs to contend with. With some of these players competing against guys that spend their lives in the gym and on the practice pitch, it’s astonishing that Italy are at all competitive in the Six Nations. Now, however, this development will allow the top players in Italy to improve on their rugby and compete against some of the best in the world on a more even field.

The Italian national team has enjoyed limited success in the Six Nations since they joined in 2000, with the majority of their wins coming against Scotland over the years. This will surely change though as their Magners League teams will be playing rugby at a standard which will boost confidence and ability and a winning attitude.

Having been to watch the Italians play in Rome in the Six Nations I’ve seen just how important the rugby is to them and their fans who turn out in huge numbers to watch, despite their side enjoying only limited success. They have one of the most eccentric fan bases and for them to start seeing massive improvements in their team would be phenomenal for the nation as a whole. The atmosphere at the Stadio Flaminio is always enjoyable, and I would have loved to have been at the sold-out San Siro to see them take on the All Blacks. Imagine the noise if and when the Azzurri start winning regularly.

I think Giancarlo Dondi, President of Federazione Italiana Rugby summed it up when he said “I am sure that the Magners League will bring benefits to all Italian rugby and will have a positive impact on the competitiveness of our national team’’

After a season or two, I believe the next step for these teams is to recruit top Italian players who are playing elsewhere in Europe. If they can entice the likes of Sergio Parisse and Martin Castrogiovanni back to playing for the Italian clubs, this would not only add valuable experience to the rest of the team but it would show the rest of Italy that they can keep home grown talent within their ranks rather than letting them jet off to other clubs around the globe.

This task will obviously be much easier if they enjoy success in the Magners League, so it will be fascinating to see how they fare next year. I for one am looking forward to seeing what this extra competitiveness will bring, not just for Italian rugby but for rugby as a whole.

By Sam Fitch

I’ve gone for 5 home victories, and in a round where most teams will be affected by international absences, I’m hopeful that this is a sensible strategy.

Ulster v Gwent Dragons: Ulster by 9
Glasgow Warriors v Cardiff Blues: Glasgow Warriors by 5
Munster v Edinburgh: Munster by 8
Leinster v Scarlets: Leinster by 8
Ospreys v Connacht Rugby: Ospreys by 13

Guinness Premiership

London Irish will be desperate to win at Worcester after their first match of 2010 ended in defeat at Northampton, whilst their hosts are looking for their first win since September.

The Warriors have drawn four games already this season, and it’s tempting to pick another stalemate since the conditions are unlikely to allow a high-scoring game. However, I’m backing Irish to continue Worcester’s woe.

The Leicester v Wasps clash could be an epic. Shaun Edwards would have been rather displeased at their defeat the Newcastle, and he may have given his players a pretty tough week of training in the snow. As a result, they’ll be hugely determined to cause an upset at Welford Road, just to get themselves back in the boss’ good books.

However, the Tigers have not lost at home in the last 24 matches, and I expect them to make it 25 this weekend. It could be another forward-dominated affair, and Leicester have a pretty good track record in this department, and although it will be close, I can see a late try and a flattering scoreline.

Worcester Warriors v London Irish: London Irish by 9
Leicester Tigers v London Wasps: Leicester Tigers by 13

Magners League

First plays third in the Magners League as leaders Glasgow travel to Dublin to face Leinster. Jonathan Sexton returns for the first time since the Autumn Internationals, and Brian O’Driscoll starts at centre.

It’s sometimes difficult to tell how much the teams want to win, but there will be no doubt in this one, and I’m backing the home side.

Here are my Magners League predictions in a snow-affected schedule:

Leinster v Glasgow Warriors: Leinster by 6
Edinburgh v Cardiff Blues: Edinburgh by 5
Munster v Scarlets: Munster by 13

The Six Nations will be with us in a matter of weeks, and we are looking forward to Martin Johnson’s squad announcement next Wednesday 13th January. Who will be in his reckoning in 2010? Can England make some progress?

We’ll be covering the Six Nations with extensive coverage, team annoucements as they happen (and sometimes before) and another SportGuru predictions game.

The Guinness Premiership, Magners League and Heineken Cup will all start to hot up in the next couple of months, and we’ll follow them through to their conclusion, as well as keeping an eye on the Championship to see which team will be joining the elite next season. Meanwhile, the Super 14 will kick off in the Southern Hemisphere, which is always entertaining.

As well as all the coverage of the action, we’ll be bringing you our own opinions on what’s going on, as well as the usual array of caption competitions and prize giveaways.

There is so much rugby to look forward to that there really is no need for the winter blues…Happy New Year!

Cardiff Blues v Connacht Rugby: Cardiff Blues by 11
Scarlets v Edinburgh: Scarlets by 6
Ulster v Glasgow Warriors: Ulster by 5
Ospreys v Munster: Munster by 7
Gwent Dragons v Leinster: Gwent Dragons by 6

Nevertheless, here are my best efforts for this weekend’s fixtures – let me know what you think:

Connacht Rugby v Scarlets: Connacht Rugby by 4
Ospreys v Glasgow Warriors: Ospreys by 7
Munster v Ulster: Munster by 5
Leinster v Cardiff Blues: Leinster by 5
Edinburgh v Gwent Dragons: Edinburgh by 8