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GUINNESS PRO12: Round 22 Preview

GUINNESS PRO12: Round 22 Preview

The regular GUINNESS PRO12 season will be capped off by ‘Super Saturday’ in round 22 as traditional derby games take place right across the Championship with all games kicking off at 5.15pm.

The semi-final teams are all but set, with Ulster still possessing a mathematical chance of pipping the Ospreys, while the Italian derby in Parma will decide whether Zebre or Benetton Treviso qualify for the 2017/18 Champions Cup.
 
The Championship’s all-time try-scoring record for a season was broken last week by Leinster’s Rory O’Loughlin against Glasgow Warriors at the RDS. By the time round 21 had finished, the total number of tries scored this season stood at 683 which means that try number 700 is likely to be recorded this weekend.

Ulster entertain Leinster at a sold-out Kingspan Stadium (live on BBC 2 Northern Ireland) knowing that a bonus point victory would give them a very slim chance of reaching the semi-finals depending on the Ospreys’ result in Llanelli. Leinster, meanwhile, will need to pick up points in order to ensure they finish in first place with Munster lying just three points behind in second spot.

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The big west Wales derby between the Scarlets and Ospreys at Parc y Scarlets (live on Sky Sports) will play an influential role in deciding the line-ups for the semi-finals. As things stand, the Scarlets would be away to Munster and the Ospreys would be away to Leinster, however, this fixture and the Munster v Connacht and Ulster v Leinster games will decide that order.
 
Munster welcome the 2016 PRO12 champions Connacht to Thomond Park (live on TG4). Connacht have secured their place in the Champions Cup qualification play-offs, but depending on Cardiff Blues’ result, a victory here may see Pat Lam’s men finish the season in seventh position.
 
The Blues travel to Caerphilly where the Newport Gwent Dragons will host their regional clash at the Constructaquote Stadium (live on S4C), while in Scotland Glasgow Warriors will entertain Edinburgh at a sold-out Scotstoun Stadium (live on BBC Scotland) to decide who wins the 1872 Cup. The Warriors take a lead 13-point lead into the match after their 25-12 win over Edinburgh in December.
 
Finally, Zebre and Benetton Treviso will meet at Stadio Sergio Lanfranchi in Parma with Champions Cup qualification on the line. Both teams are level on 19 points but in the event of a draw, Treviso have an advantage having won more games and boast a superior points difference.

GUINNESS PRO12 – ROUND 22 FIXTURES:

Saturday, May 6 (all 5.15pm kick-offs) –

Scarlets (3rd) v Ospreys (4th), Parc y Scartets (live Sky Sports 2 HD/BBC 2 Wales)

Glasgow Warriors (6th) v Edinburgh (9th), Scotstoun Stadium (live BBC 2 Scotland)

ULSTER (5th) v LEINSTER (1st), Kingspan Stadium (live BBC 2 Northern Ireland)

Newport Gwent Dragons (10th) v Cardiff Blues (7th), Constructaquote Stadium, Virginia Park (live S4C)

MUNSTER (2nd) v CONNACHT (8th), Thomond Park (live TG4)

Zebre (12th) v Benetton Treviso (11th), Stadio Sergio Lanfranchi (live Eurosport Italia)

TOP PERFORMERS IN GUINNESS PRO12 AFTER ROUND 21 (Powered by Opta Statistics):

TOP POINTS SCORERS –

Steve Shingler (Cardiff Blues) 128
Tyler Bleyendaal (Munster) 126
Angus O’Brien (Newport Gwent Dragons) 122
Rhys Patchell (Scarlets) 112
Sam Davies (Ospreys) 106

TOP TRY SCORERS –

Steffan Evans (Scarlets) 10
Ronan O’Mahony (Munster) 9
Jacob Stockdale (Ulster) 9

Tommy Seymour (Glasgow Warriors) 8
Rory O’Loughlin (Leinster) 8
Joey Carbery (Leinster) 8

TOP TRY ASSISTS –

Tyler Bleyendaal (Munster) 12
Sam Davies (Ospreys) 9
Henry Pyrgos (Glasgow Warriors) 9
Lloyd Williams (Cardiff Blues) 8
Peter Horne (Glasgow Warriors) 8
Ross Byrne (Leinster) 8
Duncan Williams (Munster) 8
Stuart Olding (Ulster) 8
Ruan Pienaar (Ulster) 8

METRES GAINED –

Tiernan O’Halloran (Connacht) 1942
Dan Evans (Ospreys) 1526
Charles Piutau (Ulster) 1501
Matthew Morgan (Cardiff Blues) 1433
Steffan Evans (Scarlets) 1108

MOST CARRIES –

Tiernan O’Halloran (Connacht) 280
Charles Piutau (Ulster) 241

Bundee Aki (Connacht) 230
Dan Evans (Ospreys) 212
Dan Baker (Ospreys) 201

CLEAN BREAKS –

Charles Piutau (Ulster) 25
Steffan Evans (Scarlets) 25
Dan Evans (Ospreys) 24
Ronan O’Mahony (Munster) 23
Jacob Stockdale (Ulster) 23

Tom James (Cardiff Blues) 22
Darren Sweetnam (Munster) 22
Damien Hoyland (Edinburgh) 21
Matthew Morgan (Cardiff Blues) 21

DEFENDERS BEATEN –

Charles Piutau (Ulster) 70
Willis Halaholo (Cardiff Blues) 61
Bundee Aki (Connacht) 54
Nick Grigg (Glasgow Warriors) 54
Steffan Evans (Scarlets) 54

MOST PASSES –

Ruan Pienaar (Ulster) 1377
Lloyd Williams (Cardiff Blues) 1130
Tom Habberfield (Ospreys) 1016
Duncan Williams (Munster) 938
Henry Pyrgos (Glasgow Warriors) 895

MOST OFFLOADS –

Charles Piutau (Ulster) 28
Bundee Aki (Connacht) 27
Jake Heenan (Connacht) 26
Josh Matavesi (Ospreys) 23
Rey Lee-Lo (Cardiff Blues) 22
Dean Budd (Benetton Treviso) 22

KICKS FROM HAND –

Sam Davies (Ospreys) 165
Carlo Canna (Zebre) 155
Ruan Pienaar (Ulster) 143
Angus O’Brien (Newport Gwent Dragons) 138
Duncan Williams (Munster) 129

MOST TACKLES –

Sean Reidy (Ulster) 244
Lewis Evans (Newport Gwent Dragons) 231
Ben Toolis (Edinburgh) 230
Josh Navidi (Cardiff Blues) 226
Nic Cudd (Newport Gwent Dragons) 218

LINEOUTS WON –

Ben Toolis (Edinburgh) 137
Macauley Cook (Cardiff Blues) 72
Rory Thornton (Ospreys) 65
Dean Budd (Benetton Treviso) 60
Aaron Shingler (Scarlets) 55
Federico Ruzza (Zebre) 55

TURNOVERS WON –

James Davies (Scarlets) 27
Dan Leavy (Leinster) 25
Ollie Griffiths (Newport Gwent Dragons) 20
Josh Navidi (Cardiff Blues) 16
Justin Tipuric (Ospreys) 16
Tommaso Castello (Zebre) 16
Tadhg Beirne (Scarlets) 16

For more statistics, please visit www.pro12rugby.com/powered-by-opta