Friend goes on offensive looking for major upset

CONNACHT head coach Andy Friend says his side will employ an attacking gameplan against Racing 92.

Racing, last season’s runners-up, The French side have contested two of the last three Champions Cup finals and are also unbeaten in European competition in their indoor La Défense Arena home.

Friend said: “If you sit back and look at all their names on the team sheet and you let them play, they are going to be good.

“But if you just say ‘it’s another 15 bodies’ out there and we actually attack it and we don’t give them the time and the space, there’s a chance of upsetting them.”

Connacht will be without four first-team players after a member of their squad tested positive for Covid-19. Three of the players were identified as close contacts and will therefore not travel.

But Friend is buoyed by the return of the several Ireland internationals, with Finlay Belham and Dave Heffernan coming

into the front row and Kieran Marmion at scrumhalf. Bundee Aki takes his place on the bench with Jarrad Butler captaining the side from openside flanker and Jack Carty taking the reins at fly-half.

With their full complement of French internationals back in action, Racing will be out to record a statement victory as they seek to go one further in a competition in which they have been runners-up twice in the last three years.

Ireland duo Donnacha Ryan and Simon Zebo are among the replacements with Australia playmaker Kurtley Beale and Scotland fly-half Finn Russell among a star-studded backline.