It seems like the blink of an eye since Leinster beat the Bulls in June to win the United Rugby Championship (URC).
Now in August, Connacht are determined to set off on the right foot on Friday when they dip their toes into the new season, taking on the Bristol Bears in their opening preseason friendly.
The westerners then head north to meet Sale Sharks at Heywood Road on Friday week.
Unsurprisingly, Connacht make both trips without any of their three Lions, Bundee Aki, Finlay Bealham and Mack Hansen.
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For Sale it will be the first chance for their fans to see new signings Nathan Jibulu, Marius Louw and Jacques Vermeulen in action.
An exciting element to the preseason is that both Connacht and Munster are going in under new coaches in the form of Stuart Lancaster and Clayton McMillan respectively.
Connacht’s game against the Bears on Friday (kick-off 1pm) will be played behind closed doors at the club’s training ground rather than Ashton Gate. The province also played Bristol last year in a preseason game under Pete Wilkins.
Given his background in coaching, Lancaster is expected to draw considerable attention to Connacht, signing on as head coach on a two-year contract having departed French club Racing 92 earlier this year.
Wilkins stepped down after Connacht’s Challenge Cup exit in April.
Lancaster spent four years as England head coach before he stepped down from the role following a poor campaign at the 2015 World Cup. He was appointed as senior coach at Leinster in 2016 and helped lead the province to four consecutive URC titles and a Champions Cup success in 2018.
Munster are in preseason action against Gloucester on September 5th before hosting Bath at Virgin Media Park on September 12th.
Former Chiefs coach McMillan, who has been with the squad since July, was pictured putting his players through their drills in Tipperary last week during an open training session at Rockwell College.
The New Zealander brings a wealth of coaching experience built up over 18 years, during which time he led the Chiefs to four Super Rugby finals in five seasons between 2021 and 2025.
Munster had planned to play a preseason friendly match against Biarritz Olympique on August 22nd but the game was cancelled by the Basque club. The Top 14 side informed Munster that due to a delay to pitch renovations at the Stade Aguilera, they were unable to host the fixture.
The clubs explored alternative venues in the hope the game could be fulfilled, but no workable solutions were found.
Munster kick off their URC campaign away to Scarlets on September 27th, while Connacht are at home to Italy’s Benneton.
Leinster have just one preseason match organised, when they take on Cardiff in Tallaght Stadium on September 13th.
The move from Dublin 4 to Dublin 24 is something Leinster has done in the past, having previously played preseason games at the home of Shamrock Rovers in 2014 and 2016.
As with Connacht and Munster, Leinster head coach Leo Cullen will have to do without his Lions contingent.
Cardiff have a host of fresh faces at the Arms Park, although they have not named their squad for the trip to Dublin.
Coach Corniel Van Zyl can call on backrow Taine Basham, who has arrived from the Dragons with 17 caps for Wales, while fellow Welsh internationals Ioan Lloyd and Sam Wainwright have switched from the Scarlets, with Scotland prop Javan Sebastian coming down from Edinburgh.
Ulster also have just one preseason match in the books, hosting Edinburgh in Belfast on September 12th.
“The fixture offers our players an opportunity to build their match fitness and put their hand up for selection going into the new season,” said Ulster head coach Richie Murphy.
“We face Edinburgh in round two of the URC at the start of October, so this will be ideal preparation.
“As a squad and staff, we are also looking forward to seeing our supporters again ahead of the new season at Affidea Stadium.”
Preseason friendly fixtures
August 29th
Bristol v Connacht, Bristol training grounds, 1pm
September 5th
Sale v Connacht, Heywood Road, 7.30pm
Gloucester v Munster, Kingsholm, 7.30pm
September 12th
Munster v Bath, Virgin Media Park, 7pm
Ulster v Edinburgh, Affidea Stadium, 7.35pm
September 13th
Leinster v Cardiff, Tallaght Stadium, 3pm
