Eben Etzebeth, Sam Simmonds and George North all feature in opening Challenge Cup round

Adam Kyriacou
Eben Etzebeth for the Sharks in 2023.

Eben Etzebeth for the Sharks in 2023.

Round One of the Challenge Cup gets underway this Friday with Clermont v Edinburgh on Friday before eight further matches take place over the weekend.

Check on the team news for all the games, below.

Friday

Clermont v Edinburgh

Clermont: 15 Alex Newsome, 14 Bautista Delguy, 13 Julien Heriteau, 12 George Moala, 11 Thomas Roziere, 10 Anthony Belleau, 9 Sebastien Bezy, 8 Pita Gus Sowakula, 7 Peceli Yato, 6 Lucas Dessaigne, 5 Thomas Lavanini, 4 Rob Simmons, Cristian Ojovan, 2 Folau Fainga’a, 1 Etienne Falgoux (c)
Replacements: 16 Yohan Beheregaray, 17 Daniel Bibi Biziwu, 18 Henzo Kiteau, 19 Fritz Lee, 20 Killian Tixeront, 21 Baptiste Jauneau, 22 Jules Plisson, 23 Pierre Fouyssac

Edinburgh: 15 Tim Swiel, 14 Harry Paterson, 13 Mark Bennett, 12 Chris Dean, 11 Duhan van der Merwe, 10 Cammy Scott, 9 Ben Vellacott (c), 8 Viliame Mata, 7 Hamish Watson, 6 Luke Crosbie, 5 Jamie Hodgson, 4 Marshall Sykes, 3 Javan Sebastian, 2 Ewan Ashman, 1 Robin Hislop
Replacements: 16 Adam McBurney, 17 Boan Venter, 18 Angus Williams, 19 Glen Young, 20 Connor Boyle, 21 Charlie Shiel, 22 Matt Currie, 23 Wes Goosen

Venue: Stade Marcel-Michelin
Kick-off: 21:00 local (20:00 GMT)
Referee: Ben Whitehouse (Wal)
Assistant Referees: Joy Neville (Ire), Padraic Reidy (Ire)
TMO: Brian MacNeice (Ire)

Saturday

Black Lion v Gloucester

Black Lion: 15 Luka Tsirekidze, 14 Akaki Tabutsadze, 13 Giorgi Kveseladze, 12 Merab Sharikadze, 11 Sandro Todua, 10 Luka Matkava, 9 Tengiz Peranidze, 8 Ilia Spanderashvili, 7 Sandro Mamamtavrishvili, 6 Luka Ivanishvili, 5 Mikheil Babunashvili, 4 Nodar Cheishvili, 3 Giorgi Chkhartishvili, 2 Irakli Kvatadze, 1 Dato Abdushelishvili
Replacements: 16 Beka Mamrikashvili, 17 Aliko Shamilishvili, 18 Bachuki Tchumbadze, 19 Demuri Epremidze, 20 Giorgi Kervalishvili, 21 Giorgi Margalitadze, 22 Tornike Kakhoidze, 23 Miriani Modebadze

Gloucester: 15 Jacob Morris, 14 Alex Hearle, 13 Louis Hillman-Cooper, 12 Seb Atkinson, 11 Jonny May, 10 George Barton, 9 Michael Young, 8 Ben Donnell, 7 Harry Taylor (c), 6 Freddie Thomas, 5 Cameron Jordan, 4 Freddie Clarke, 3 Kirill Gotovtsev, 2 Seb Blake, 1 Jamal Ford-Robinson
Replacements: 16 George McGuigan, 17 Harry Elrington, 18 Ciaran Knight, 19 Arthur Clark, 20 Lewis Ludlow, 21 Charlie Chapman, 22 Max Llewellyn, 23 Josh Hathaway

Venue: Mikheil Meskhi Stadium
Kick-off: 17:00 local (13:00 GMT)
Referee: Adam Jones (Wal)
Assistant Referees: Tom Spurrier (Wal), Elgan Williams (Wal)
TMO: Sean Brickell (Wal)

Zebre Parma v Cheetahs

Zebre Parma: 15 Geronimo Prisciantelli, 14 Jacopo Trulla, 13 Luca Morisi, 12 Franco Smith Jr, 11 Simone Gesi, 10 Tiff Eden, 9 Alessandro Fusco, 8 Giovanni Licata (c), 7 Iacopo Bianchi, 6 Giacomo Ferrari, 5 Andrea Zambonin, 4 David Sisi, 3 Juan Pitinari, 2 Luca Bigi, 1 Danilo Fischetti
Replacements: 16 Giampietro Ribaldi, 17 Luca Rizzoli, 18 Matteo Nocera, 19 Guido Volpi, 20 Taina Fox-Matamua, 21 Gonzalo Garcia, 22 Fetuli Paea, 23 Jake Polledri

Cheetahs: 15 Tapiwa Mafura, 14 Siba Xamlashe, 13 Evardi Boshoff, 12 Reinhardt Fortuin, 11 Cohen Jasper, 10 George Lourens, 9 Ruan Pienaar, 8 Jeandre Rudolph, 7 Friedle Olivier, 6 Gideon van der Merwe, 5 Victor Sekekete, 4 Rynier Bernardo, 3 Laurence Victor, 2 Marnus van der Merwe, 1 Schalk Ferreira
Replacements: 16 Louis van der Westhuizen, 17 Alulutho Tshakweni, 18 Hencus van Wyk, 19 Carl Wegner, 20 Daniel Maartens, 21 Sibabalo Qoma, 22 Rewan Kruger, 23 Ali Mgijima

Venue: Stadio Sergio Lanfranchi
Kick-off: 14:00 local (13:00 GMT)
Referee: Jack Makepeace (Eng)
Assistant Referees: Sara Cox (Eng), Gareth Holsgrove (Eng)
TMO: Dean Richards (Eng)

Sharks v Pau

Sharks: 15 Aphelele Fassi, 14 Marnus Potgieter, 13 Lukhanyo Am (c), 12 Francois Venter, 11 Makazole Mapimpi, 10 Curwin Bosch, 9 Grant Williams, 8 Sikhumbuzo Notshe, 7 Phepsi Buthelezi, 6 James Venter, 5 Corne Rahl, 4 Eben Etzebeth, 3 Coenie Oosthuizen, 2 Kerron van Vuuren, 1 Ox Nche
Replacements: 16 Dan Jooste, 17 Ntuthuko Mchunu, 18 Hanro Jacobs, 19 Le Roux Roets, 20 Lappies Labuschagne, 21 Jaden Hendrikse, 22 Lionel Cronje, 23 Ethan Hooker

Pau: 15 Thomas Carol, 14 Aminiasi Tuimaba, 13 Samuel Ezeala, 12 Jale Vatubua, 11 Gregoire Arfeuil, 10 Axel Desperes, 9 Thibault Daubagna, 8 Thibaut Hamonou, 7 Martin Puech (c), 6 Mehdi Tlili, 5 Fabrice Metz, 4 Guillaume Ducat, 3 Nicolas Corato, 2 Romain Ruffenach, 1 Paul Tailhades
Replacements: 16 Youri Delhommel, 17 Facundo Gigena, 18 Ziggy Fisi’ihoi, 19 Brent Liufau, 20 Josselin Bouhier, 21 Thomas Souverbie, 22 Thibault Debaes, 23 Nathan Decron

Venue: Kings Park
Kick-off: 17:15 local (15:15 GMT)
Referee: Gianluca Gnecchi (Ita)
Assistant Referees: Christophe Ridley (Eng), Simon Harding (Eng)
TMO: Ian Tempest (Eng)

Castres v Scarlets

Castres: 15 Julien Dumora (c), 14 Josaia Raisuqe, 13 Adrien Seguret, 12 Vilimoni Botitu, 11 Antoine Bouzerand, 10 Louis le Brun, 9 Jeremy Fernandez, 8 Abraham Papalii, 7 Baptiste Cope, 6 Romain Macurdy, 5 Tom Staniforth, 4 Florent Vanverberghe, 3 Aurelien Azar, 2 Gaetan Barlot, 1 Wayan de Benedittis
Replacements: 16 Pierre Colonna, 17 Antoine Tichit, 18 Levan Chilachava, 19 Leone Nakarawa, 20 Yann Peysson, 21 Gauthier Doubrere, 22 Pierre Popelin, 23 Theo Chabouni

Scarlets: 15 Tom Rogers, 14 Steff Evans, 13 Jonathan Davies (c), 12 Johnny Williams, 11 Ryan Conbeer, 10 Ioan Lloyd, 9 Kieran Hardy, 8 Carwyn Tuipulotu, 7 Teddy Leatherbarrow, 6 Ben Williams, 5 Jac Price, 4 Morgan Jones, 3 Joe Jones, 2 Ryan Elias, 1 Steff Thomas
Replacements: 16 Shaun Evans, 17 Sam O’Connor, 18 Harri O’Connor, 19 Ed Scragg, 20 Iwan Shenton, 21 Archie Hughes, 22 Charlie Titcombe, 23 Ioan Nicholas

Venue: Stade Pierre Fabre
Kick-off: 16:15 local (15:15 GMT)
Referee: Nika Amashukeli (Geo)
Assistant Referees: Saba Abuashvili (Geo), Shota Tevzadze (Geo)
TMO: Matteo Liperini (Ita)

Ospreys v Benetton

Ospreys: 15 Iestyn Hopkins, 14 Luke Morgan, 13 George North, 12 Owen Watkin, 11 Keelan Giles, 10 Owen Williams, 9 Reuben Morgan-Williams, 8 Morgan Morris (c), 7 Jac Morgan, 6 Rhys Davies, 5 Adam Beard, 4 James Fender, 3 Tom Botha, 2 Dewi Lake, 1 Gareth Thomas
Replacements: 16 Sam Parry, 17 Nicky Smith, 18 Ben Warren, 19 Harri Deaves, 20 Tristan Davies, 21 Luke Davies, 22 Jack Walsh, 23 Mat Protheroe

Benetton: 15 Edoardo Padovani, 14 Paolo Odogwu, 13 Nacho Brex, 12 Malakai Fekitoa, 11 Onisi Ratave, 10 Jacob Umaga, 9 Andy Uren, 8 Lorenzo Cannone, 7 Michele Lamaro (c), 6 Sebastian Negri, 5 Federico Ruzza, 4 Niccolo Cannone, 3 Giosue Zilocchi, 2 Gianmarco Lucchesi, 1 Thomas Gallo
Replacements: 16 Bautista Bernasconi, 17 Mirco Spagnolo, 18 Filippo Alongi, 19 Gideon Koegelenberg, 20 Riccardo Favretto, 21 Toa Halafihi, 22 Sam Hidalgo-Clyne, 23 Leonardo Marin

Venue: Swansea.com Stadium
Kick-off: 17:30 GMT
Referee: Ludovic Cayre (Fra)
Assistant Referees: Baptiste Nuchy (Fra), Pierre Bru (Fra)
TMO: Patrick Dellac (Fra)

Dragons v Oyonnax

Dragons: 15 Jordan Williams, 14 Rio Dyer, 13 Sio Tomkinson, 12 Steff Hughes (c), 11 Ashton Hewitt, 10 Will Reed, 9 Rhodri Williams, 8 Aaron Wainwright, 7 Harri Keddie, 6 Ryan Woodman, 5 George Nott, 4 Joe Davies, 3 Lloyd Fairbrother, 2 Elliot Dee, 1 Rhodri Jones
Replacements: 16 Brodie Coghlan, 17 Aki Seiuli, 18 Chris Coleman, 19 Sean Lonsdale, 20 George Young, 21 Dane Blacker, 22 Harri Ackerman, 23 Corey Baldwin

Oyonnax: 15 Maxime Salles, 14 Souleymane Coulibaly, 13 Leo Treilles, 12 Pedro Bettencourt, 11 Joe Ravouvou, 10 Jules Soulan, 9 Charlie Cassang, 8 Loic Godener, 7 Hugo Hermet, 6 Filimo Taofifenua, 5 Steve Mafi, 4 Victor Lebas, 3 Irakli Mirtskhulava, 2 Manu Leiataua, 1 Rory Sutherland
Replacements: 16 Julien Ratajczak, 17 Adrien Bordenave, 18 Antonin Corso, 19 Ewan Johnson, 20 Ilan El Khattabi, 21 David Odiase, 22 Alexis Pisani, 23 Thibault Berthaud

Venue: Rodney Parade
Kick-off: 20:00 GMT
Referee: Eoghan Cross (Ire)
Assistant Referees: Keane Davison (Ire), Tomas O’Sullivan (Ire)
TMO: Mark Patton (Ire)

Sunday

Perpignan v Lions

Perpignan: 15 Jean-Pascal Barraque, 14 Lucas Dubois, 13 Afusipa Taumoepeau, 12 Freddy Duguivalu, 11 Louis Dupichot, 10 Alexandre Perez, 9 Matteo Rodor, 8 Ewan Bertheau, 7 Alan Brazo, 6 Jaco van Tonder, 5 Shahn Eru, 4 Tristan Labouteley, 3 Nemo Roelofse, 2 Victor Montgaillard, 1 Sacha Lotrian
Replacements: 16 Vakhtang Jincharadze, 17 Xavier Chiocci, 18 Akato Fakatika, 19 Lucas Bachelier, 20 Valentin Moro, 21 Tom Ecochard, 22 Eddie Sawailau, 23 Boris Goutard

Lions: 15 Andries Coetzee, 14 Rabz Maxwane, 13 Erich Cronje, 12 Zander du Plessis, 11 Boldwin Hansen, 10 Jordan Hendrikse, 9 Nico Steyn, 8 Hanru Sirgel, 7 Ruhan Straeuli, 6 JC Pretorius, 5 Raynard Roets, 4 Etienne Oosthuizen, 3 Ruan Smith, 2 Jaco Visagie, 1 Corne Fourie
Replacements: 16 Morne Brandon, 17 Morgan Naude, 18 Conraad van Vuuren, 19 Izan Esterhuizen, 20 Travis Gordon, 21 Johan Mulder, 22 Gianni Lombard, 23 Rynhardt Jonker

Venue: Stade Aime Giral
Kick-off: 14:00 local (13:00 GMT)
Referee: Adam Leal (Eng)
Assistant Referees: Alex Thomas (Eng), Neil Chivers (Eng)
TMO: Rowan Kitt (Eng)

Newcastle Falcons v Montpellier

Newcastle Falcons: 15 Ben Redshaw, 14 Adam Radwan, 13 Ollie Spencer, 12 Matias Orlando, 11 Iwan Stephens, 10 Rory Jennings, 9 James Elliott, 8 Callum Chick (c), 7 Sam Cross, 6 Freddie Lockwood, 5 Sebastian de Chaves, 4 John Hawkins, 3 Murray McCallum, 2 Bryan Byrne, 1 Phil Brantingham
Replacements: 16 Jamie Blamire, 17 Adam Brocklebank, 18 Mark Tampin, 19 Tim Cardall, 20 Ollie Leatherbarrow, 21 Hugh O’Sullivan, 22 Louie Johnson, 23 Zach Kerr

Montpellier: 15 Anthony Bouthier (c), 14 George Bridge, 13 Thomas Darmon, 12 Auguste Cadot, 11 Ben Lam, 10 Louis Carbonel, 9 Leo Coly, 8 Sam Simmonds, 7 Alex Becognee, 6 Clement Doumenc, 5 Tyler DuGuid, 4 Marco Tauleigne, 3 Harry Williams, 2 Vano Karkadze, 1 Gregory Fichten
Replacements: 16 Adrien Sonzogni, 17 Karl Tu’inukuafe, 18 Titi Lamositele, 19 Bastien Chalureau, 20 Cantin Foguet, 21 Louis Foursans-Bourdette, 22 Masi Dakuwaqa, 23 Pierre Lucas

Venue: Kingston Park
Kick-off: 15:15 GMT
Referee: Sam Grove-White (Sco)
Assistant Referees: Hollie Davidson (Sco), Ru Campbell (Sco)
TMO: Andrew McMenemy (Sco)

READ MORE: The 50 best rugby players of the year, part two: 40-31

Benetton Treviso Eben Etzebeth George North Sam Simmonds

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