By Conaill Muldoon
Connacht's form has been suitably erratic as we move through this midway juncture in the club rugby calendar. However, this week's opponents will provide the perfect opportunity for the men from the west to build on their recent victory over Munster.
Lyon currently sit second from bottom in the French Top 14 domestic league. In what is a hotly contested competition, the team from the south-east of France suffered a 45-0 defeat to Toulouse last Saturday. They have also lost heavily to Bordeaux and Castres respectively in recent fixtures, and their last domestic win came against Bayonne on the 25th of November. Their current record in the Top 14 is 4 wins and 8 losses.
The French side have fared slightly better in The Champions Cup, toppling URC high-fliers The Vodacom Bulls at home, before narrowly losing out to Bristol on a score-line of 36-34. This leads them second in the pool. They will target this upcoming fixture as an opportunity to turn their fortunes around, and as with all French sides, home advantage will be key.
Lyon do not currently boast the star power which seems to be a hallmark of most Top 14 squads, with players such as Semi Radradra and Monty Ioane not having played since early December. However, the giant French lock Romain Taofifenua, Georgian fullback Niniashvilli and former Irish international Paddy Jackson should all feature in what is still a well-balanced team.
With Connacht having benefitted from a weekend off, Pete Wilkin's side should be in good fettle to cause an upset this coming Saturday. They have come through the Christmas period with one loss and one win against provincial rivals Ulster and Munster respectively, somewhat steadying the ship after a run of bad defeats.
The bad news for Connacht and Irish rugby is that Mack Hansen will be unavailable for three to four months with a dislocated shoulder. The winger has been a consistently excellent attacking threat for the province, with a genuine ability to unlock defences. His loss will be a major one, but Connacht must now look forward to a huge European clash.
Connacht sit bottom of their pool in Europe at the moment, so results against Lyon and Pat Lam's Bristol in the coming weeks are a must. They then head into a busy period against beatable opposition in the URC, so results in Europe can be used dually as a launchpad for the domestic competition.
This is an important game for Connacht for myriad reasons. Lyon will still be favourites with home advantage, but this should be a tightly contested game.
Lyon vs Connacht kicks off on Saturday, January 13th at 13:00. The match will be shown on TNT Sports.
