Guinness PRO12 Preview Round 5
Round four of the Guinness PRO12 saw some memorable records set – the fastest try of the season so far; 37 seconds by Harry Robinson for Scarlets against Edinburgh at BT Murrayfield, which is also 6th fastest try of all time in the competition and best by any Scarlets player. Duncan Weir claimed his 500th PRO12 point with 4 conversions and two penalties for Glasgow in their game against Connacht, and when Bryan Byrne came on as a late replacement to join his brother Ed playing for Leinster against Cardiff Blues, they became only the 2nd set of twins to be on the pitch at the same time in the same game, the others being Gilberto and Riccardo Pavin who appeared together for Aironi in the 2011/12 season.
The accumulative number of tries scored this season to date, 115, is a record since the competition went home and away, as is the average number of tries per game, 4.79, whilst attendances have increased on those recorded for the first four rounds last year.
As we enter round five the only two remaining teams with a 100% winning record are both away to Italian opposition, Ospreys at Zebre on Friday night and Glasgow Warriors against Benetton Treviso on Sunday. Both home sides have beaten their opposition in previous seasons, so there is no guarantee of points from these trips, but whichever visiting team comes away with the most league points will be placed top of the table at the end of the round.
The other two teams in the top four Play-Off zone places, Connacht and Ulster, both play Friday night, but it is the Irish provinces that currently lie 5th and 6th in the table that are the biggest draw of the weekend, as Leinster host Munster at the Aviva Stadium. Just one point separates these two sides, but Munster have not won in Dublin for six years, and with each team having a won two, lost two record in the competition so far, the signs are set for an epic encounter.
The round wraps up with the all-Welsh clash between Scarlets and Newport Gwent Dragons on Sunday, the hosts being in the unusual position of recording two drawn games out of the four played so far.
