Milestone match for prop Buckley in Treviso as Aki returns from suspension

By Rob Murphy

ON Saturday evening Connacht will take to the field in Treviso for a clash with Benetton (kick off 5.15pm) with both sides still in the hunt for a place in the final of  the newly created Rainbow Cup against the leading South African outfit. The odds are against them on that but it’s not beyond the bounds of possibility,

The game will see the return to action for Bundee Aki after his four-match suspension – for a red card against England in the Six Nations – that has lasted close to three months. His return will be a welcome relief to British and Irish Lions coach Warren Gatland who will be anxious to see his choice for one of the centre squad spots get some much needed game time with the  province he famously coached back in the late 90s.

The game against Benetton will also see loosehead prop Denis Buckley hit a remarkable milestone as it will be his 200th appearance in the green of Connacht. The Roscommon native made his debut in 2011 when Eric Elwood was head coach in the same venue of Stadio Di Monigo. A remarkable piece of symmetry ten years on.

There have been just two players before Buckley who have broken the 200 mark with the province.Michael Swift, who reached 269 appearances before he retired and John Muldoon who notched up a remarkable 327 games for his home province.

Had Elwood’s career aligned fully with the professional era, we can be certain that he too would have broken the 200 barrier, even allowing for the much shorter inter-provincial seasons. Elwood himself hit 150 appearances in his time and his name came up in Tuesday’s press event as Buckley recalled his first time attending a Connacht match as a member of the Creggs RFC mascot team.

For more, read this week’s Connacht Tribune.

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