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Matt Healy: starts for Connacht in Italy tomorrow night. ©INPHO/James Crombie
Pro12

Elwood shakes it up for Connacht's Italian job

You didn’t forget about the Pro12, did you? Here’s the team news for Connacht’s trip to the Stadio Monigo.

CENTRE EOIN GRIFFIN has been ruled out of Connacht’s rescheduled Pro12 clash with Benetton Treviso.

Griffin picked up a knock in last week’s inter-pro derby against Ulster and has not recovered in time for tomorrow evening’s trip to the Stadio Monigo (kick-off 7.30pm).

His absence forces coach Eric Elwood into a reshuffle in his back-line with top try scorer Danie Poolman moving to outside centre and Matt Healy, who came off the bench last weekend, starting on the right wing.

Connacht’s three other changes all come in the pack with Ethienne Reynecke starting at hooker ahead of Adrian Flavin. Andrew Browne starts at blindside flanker while his fellow Galway native Eoin McKeon is named on the other side of George Naoupu in the back row.

Treviso coach Franco Smith also makes wholesale changes to his starting line-up with Michele Campagnaro, one of the stars of the Italian U20 side, making his debut.

Benetton Treviso: Luke McLean; Ludovico Nitoglia, Michele Campagnaro, Gideon La Grange, Giulio Toniolatti; Alberto Di Bernardo, Edoardo Gori; Michele Rizzo, Leonardo Ghiraldini (c), Ignacio Fernandez-Rouyet; Francesco Minto, Valerio Bernabò; Simone Favaro, Alessandro Zanni, Robert Barbieri. Replacements: Giovanni Maistri, Alberto De Marchi, Lorenzo Cittadini, Antonio Pavanello, Manoa Vosawai, Marco Filippucci, Tobias Botes,Luca Morisi.
Connacht: Gavin Duffy (c); Matt Healy, Danie Poolman, Brian Murphy, Fetu’u Vainikolo; Dan Parks, Kieran Marmion; Brett Wilkinson, Ethienne Reynecke, Ronan Loughney; Michael Swift, Mike McCarthy; Andrew Browne, Eoin McKeon, George Naoupu. Replacements: Adrian Flavin, Rodney Ah You, JP Cooney, Mick Kearney, John Muldoon, Paul O’Donohoe, Miah Nikora, Tiernan O’Halloran.

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