In what is quite a coup for the province, Connacht will play South Africa at the Sportsground on Tuesday, August 21st as part of the Springboks' World Cup preparations, writes Gerry Thornley.
It will be the first time they will host a visiting international side since they beat Fiji 27-5 on November 14th, 1995 when Eddie O'Sullivan was their coach.
South Africa will travel to Galway following their Tri-Nations encounters with New Zealand and Australia and will take on Scotland in Murrayfield four days after playing Connacht. South Africa coach Jake White will name a 30-man World Cup squad on July 21st, and the first glimpse of this squad in the northern hemisphere will be on August 21st.
The final round of Celtic League fixtures has now been confirmed. Of the main three title contenders, Cardiff Blues will host Leinster on Friday, May 11th at the Arms Park, kick-off 7.10pm live on BBC Wales and Setanta Sports, while the Ospreys' trip to Border Reivers will take place on Saturday, May 12th, S4C showing this game with a 5.30pm start.
Ulster v Edinburgh Rugby and Llanelli Scarlets v Connacht have both been scheduled for Friday, May 11th, while Munster v Glasgow Warriors will take place on Saturday, May 12th.
