The odds against favourites Stormers and Leinster in Scotland’s United Rugby Championship must be overcome by Scotland’s two sides.
Leinster were not only European Champions Cup finalists who lost, but they also topped URC tables to tie themselves against eighth-placed Glasgow.
After finishing second, Stormers are at home to seventh-top Edinburgh.
Mike Blair’s side will be encouraged by the 20-20 draw that the two sides achieved in the Scottish capital in Oct.
Even though it will be Edinburgh’s first-ever match in Cape Town, the team became the first Northern Hemisphere to win in South Africa under the URC after beating Sharks 21-6 in April.
They won the URC table last time out and beat Glasgow 28-11.
John Dobson’s Stormers have won eight straight games, culminating with a 26-21 win against Scarlets in Llanelli.
Leinster, on the other hand, will be sore from Saturday’s dramatic Euro final defeat at Marseille. La Rochelle took the trophy after winning 24-21.
The winner at RDS Stadium will be able to play either Bulls or Sharks next weekend. Meanwhile, Stormers and Glasgow are competing to host either Ulster nor Munster.
News from the team
Leinster Leo Cullen is the head coach and makes seven personnel adjustments. Johnny Sexton, captain of Ireland, has an ankle injury that prevents him from playing. Ross Byrne will replace Ross byrne. James Lowe will be rested and Rory O’Loughlin will take over as left wing.
Ciaran Frawley begins at the centre, while Robbie Henshaw drops down to the bench. Jordan Larmour, Hugo Keenan being rested, starts on the opposite wing, as Jimmy O’Brien shifts from full-back to Jordan Larmour.
Dan Sheehan is in the front row. Ronan Kelleher, a prop, has been injured and Joe McCarthy moves into the second row. Ryan Baird moves to the bench while Caelan Doris switches to number eight.
Only his second start, Gregor Brown is designated as openside flanker GlasgowThomas Gordon, along with two Scotland internationals returning to injury, Fraser Brown (forward) and George Horne (scrum-half), were both moved to the bench.
Henry Pyrgos replaces Ben Vellacott, who is injured at scrum-half. This is the only change to the Edinburgh Glasgow beat by Glasgow.
The only changes to the Scrum-half Herschel Jantjies are centre Rikus Prutorius and Scrum-half Herschel Jantjies. Stormers Scarlets was defeated by the South African Shield, which secured the South African Shield as top finishers in the URC table.
Jantjies is in to replace Stefan Ungerer. Pretorius, on the other hand, is in the center of the room for Damian Willemse who has been left with an arm injury.
After being selected among the replacements, Sacha Mngomezulu as utility back is now eligible for a debut.
They said it!
Danny Wilson, head coach of the Glasgow Warriors: “Playing away at Leinster can be a difficult challenge. Leinster are the leader in the league over the past few years.
“We are aware that we will be underdogs in this game, but we feel confident we have prepared well and we look forward to taking on this challenge.
Edinburgh head coach Mike Blair: “We are grateful to our backfield team for getting us to Cape Town early. This gave us the best chance to recuperate and prepare for Saturday’s match. They also provided us with a full week of training.
“As a team, we really benefited by our two week tour of South Africa in April. It once more galvanised the guys. There’s a great feeling with this group – there’s an incredible sense of togetherness. We know Stormers are strong and it will be a tough test away from home but we have faith and confidence in how we want to play.
Stormers head coach John Dobson: “A lot of hardwork went into securing the home quarter-final. So we are determined to rise up to the occasion.
“It’s been a great week of preparation, and everyone is excited for what will be a memorable day.” We are determined to keep the intensity up and play the type of rugby that has gotten us here.
Line-ups for teams
Leinster: Jimmy O’Brien, Jordan Larmour, Garry Ringrose, Ciaran Frawley, Rory O’Loughlin, Ross Byrne, Jamison Gibson-Park, Andrew Porter, Dan Sheehan, Tadhg Furlong, Joe McCarthy, James Ryan, Ryan Baird, Josh van der Flier, Caelan Doris.
Keenan; J O’Brien, Ringrose, Henshaw, Lowe; Sexton (capt), Gibson-Park; Porter, Kelleher, Furlong, Molony, Ryan; Doris, Van der Flier, Conan.
Replacements: Sean Cronin and Cian Healy, Michael Ala’alatoa and Ross Molony. Robbie Henshaw, Harry Byrne, Harry Byrne.
Glasgow Ollie Smith and Josh McKay, Sione Tiipulotu, Sam Johnson and Rufus McLean, Ross Thompson. Ali Price, Jamie Bhatti. George Turner. Zander Fagerson. Rob Harley. Richie Gray. Ryan Wilson. Jack Dempsey.
Replacements: Fraser Brown, Oli Kebble, Simon Berghan, Lewis Bean, Kiran McDonald, Thomas Gordon, George Horne, Domingo Miotti.
Stormers: Warrick Gelant, Seabelo Senatla, Ruhan Nel, Rikus Pretorius, Leolin Zas, Manie Libbok, Herschel Jantjies, Steven Kitshoff, JJ Kotze, Frans Malherbe, Salmaan Moerat, Marvin Orie, Deon Fourie, Hacjivah Dayimani, Evan Roos.
Replacements: Andre-Hugo Venter, Brok Harris, Neethling Fouche, Adre Smith, Ernst van Rhyn, Nama Xaba, Godlen Masimla, Sacha Mngomezulu.
Edinburgh: Darcy Graham and Mark Bennett, Emiliano Boffelli, Darcy Graham and Chris Dean, Damien Hoyland. Henry Pyrgos, Pierre Schoeman. Dave Cherry. WP Nel. Jamie Hodgson. Grant Gilchrist. Luke Crosbie. Hamish Watson. Magnus Bradbury.
Replacements: Adam McBurney, Harrison Courtney, Lee-Roy Atalifo, Marshall Sykes, Ben Muncaster, Charlie Shiel, Jaco van der Walt, James Lang.