Hansen and Bealham back for province ahead of URC trip to face Benetton

Andy Friend accepts that Connacht must win all of their four remaining URC games

Captain keen to bounce back from ‘embarrasing’ defeat to Edinburgh against champions

Shane Horgan keeps the cork in the bottle and looks at what Ireland had to beat

John O’Sullivan hands out the marks to Andy Farrell’s side from the Aviva Stadium

John O’Sullivan hands out the marks to Andy Farrell’s winning side at Twickenham

Ireland head coach names a settled XV with a number of players returning from injury

Andy Farrell picks an experienced team for Saturday’s trip to Twickenham

‘I would love to see Joey get a bit more game-time, not necessarily just this weekend’

Abrasive centre says – despite Sexton’s absence – Ireland have the players to take the game to the French

Henshaw and Henderson return to the replacements bench for Paris trip

Strong showing by starting team against Wales suggests an unchanged Irish XV

Andy Farrell’s side travel to Paris on Saturday looking to follow up on their Wales win

Ireland and France share similar playing styles with one or two points of difference

He may no longer be front of house in the back line, but he brings order and composure

Farrell facing some difficult selection calls with Henderson and Henshaw back in the mix

Head coach named strong side for Six Nations opener against defending champions

George Taylor is latest player to retire from professional rugby due to brain injury

Andy Friend’s side let 18-point lead slip away but can still reach Champions Cup last-16

Sides combine for nine total tries as western province denied a famous Galway victory

A talisman on the pitch, Connacht’s first Lion in 39 years is adored by the young fans

High-flying Leicester make their first visit to the formidable Sportsground for key clash

Backrow has enjoyed an outstanding season so far with ball in hand

Andy Friend’s side are continually on the upgrade as stodgy Munster fail to inspire

Both sides have players sent to the bin as Andy Friend’s hosts show resilience to win

Alex Kendellen to make first Munster start in exciting young backrow

English side on 12-game winning streak ahead of Sunday’s clash

Connacht hoping to take on Leinster learnings as they start European campaign

Form says that changes the Leinster backrow made are working after impressive autumn

Andy Friend’s side looking to repeat last season's success at the RDS on Friday night

Centre suffered a knee injury in Ireland’s win over New Zealand

Leinster centre has been largely absent since the Lions series during the summer

Lowe was up against it because at heart, we all know the residency rule is a bit of a cod

From the Haka to the whistle Farrell’s side played with a stirring intensity in Dublin

Full house at the Aviva relishes outstanding performance from Andy Farrell’s side

Both teams will make mistakes, the key will be who will respond better to them

New Zealand-born scrumhalf settling into side ahead of clash he has ‘dreamt of’

Ireland will have to stay organised to counter Japan’s improved attack and set-piece

Head coach Andy Friend calls Aviva Stadium experiment a success after big bonus-point win

Coach picks out former Munster player Conor Oliver for special praise