• Owen Farrell and Elliot Daly start for defending champions
• Leinster can seal quarter-final spot with bonus point win
Leinster will qualify for the knockout stage if they defeat Northampton with a bonus point at the Aviva Stadium and Lyon come unstuck in Treviso. The Saints start the round second in the group but have made eight changes from the side that lost at home last weekend to the 2018 winners. Tom Wood leads the side on his 200th appearance for the club but Teimana Harrison, outstanding in defeat at Franklin’s Gardens, is among those rested as head coach Chris Boyd keeps an eye on the Premiership where his side are top. Leinster are without the injured Johnny Sexton and have recalled scrum-half Luke McGrath while the Ireland prop Tadhg Furlong starts at tighthead prop. Scott Fardy captains the side from the second row. Lyon, who secured their first Champions Cup last week, need to win in Italy to remain in contention for the last eight.
Written by Paul Rees
This news first appeared on https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2019/dec/13/champions-cup-rugby-saracens-leinster-northampton-munster under the title “Champions Cup preview: Saracens recall internationals for crucial match”. Bolchha Nepal is not responsible or affiliated towards the opinion expressed in this news article.
