It will be the dawn of a new era for Leinster Rugby this weekend as they play their first BKT URC game at the redeveloped Laya Arena.

The league champions will welcome second-placed Cardiff Rugby to their new-look home at the Royal Dublin Society site on Saturday evening, with a bumper crowd expected for the landmark fixture.

As a result of the redevelopment, which is the product of more than 220,000 working hours, the capacity is now up to 20,600, with the new Anglesea Stand holding 6,775.

One other nice stat is that the total distance of seating if laid end to end would stretch 3.39km. For those with local knowledge, that takes you as far as the Ha’penny Bridge!

So, after a season at the Aviva Stadium, Leinster are back at the RDS, having signed a 25-year agreement to use the Laya Arena for their home games.

Head coach Leo Cullen views it as a very welcome move as he embarks on his final season at the helm.

“You want a proper club ground, with a proper club feel, that’s the big thing,” he said.

“When you go to an international stadium, it’s very hard to generate a club feel because you are on the bus, you are under the tunnel, it’s an international ground.

“Here at the Laya, there’s proper engagement with the fans with everyone on top of each other. That’s what club rugby should be like.

“Kids who come into the ground can actually see their heroes whereas it’s always a bit more distant at the bigger stadiums like the Aviva.

“Don’t get me wrong, we are very lucky to play there, but it’s not a club ground. Club is the big thing for me.”

On the redevelopment project, he said: “A huge amount of work has gone into upgrading the venue and we can’t wait to build a powerful bond with our team and supporters as we progress through the season.”

Adding his thoughts, assistant coach Emmett Farrell said: “The old RDS had some great nights and we are looking forward to having some really big nights in the Laya Arena.”

Assessing the challenge presented by Cardiff, Farrell said: “It will be a big test. They are really good.

“They are definitely the strongest Welsh team at the moment. They are growing the depth of their squad with quality guys. So they are definitely a threat.

“They got the better of us twice last year. They beat us in pre-season at Tallaght and then they beat us at the Arms Park later in the year. So they will be very confident.

“They have had a really strong start to the season.

“They got an away win in a Welsh derby, which is a big confidence boost, and they had a nice comfortable win against Zebre.

“They look very strong. Their pack has been brilliant, their maul has been going well.

“They’ve got really good half-backs. Their tactical kicking is very strong, so we are going to have to be very secure in the back.

“Their aerial game is very strong. They did a bit of a job on us in Cardiff when they won a lot of the aerial contests. So we have to make sure we reverse that trend.”

He concluded: “They will be coming here full of confidence which is a danger to us. They are going to have a good crack. They will have good belief that they can do it.

“There will be no holds barred on the weekend.”

Title holders Leinster will be looking for their first win of the BKT URC season having lost their opening two games out in South Africa – against the 10Bet Lions and Hollywoodbets Sharks – while picking up three losing bonus points as valuable consolation.

It was only eight months ago that Siba Mahashe made his BKT URC debut.

But the 22-year-old loose forward is already being seen as one of the brightest young talents in South African rugby.

That was illustrated by his inclusion in a Springboks alignment camp in May, while he went on to make his debut for South Africa A against Zimbabwe in Gqeberha the following month.

Then, in August, he further enhanced his rising reputation with a Player of the Match display in the 10Bet Lions’ thrilling clash with the touring All Blacks.

Now he has begun the new season by helping the Johannesburg-based side win their opening two BKT URC fixtures to lie third in the league table.

Next up comes a big derby clash with the Vodacom Bulls at Pretoria’s Loftus Versfeld this Saturday.

It’s been a remarkably rapid rise for Masashe and he is clearly a young man with a big future in the game.

However, rugby really found him by chance.

“I started playing in primary school when I was eight,” he explains.

“I actually didn’t plan on playing rugby. I used to play football and cricket.

“B ut my friends played rugby and they were short of a player.

“So my dad had to go quickly to buy me kit to play in.

“I always refer to that as the year that rugby chose me.”

Born and raised in the Eastern Cape, Mahashe earned a scholarship to Hudson Park High School in KuGompo City and went on to catch the eye while playing for Border at the famous Craven Week in 2022.

That earned him selection for South Africa Schools and he was to captain the team on a couple of occasions, later going on to win international honours with the Baby Boks at the 2024 U20s World Championship.

Having relocated to Johannesburg, he made his debut for the Lions in a Challenge Cup clash with Lyon in January of this year and then took his BKT URC bow versus the Hollywoodbets Sharks the following month, marking the occasion with a try.

His obvious dynamic talent was soon recognised as he was fast tracked into a 40-strong Springboks alignment camp.

“It was a dream come true for me,” says the flanker.

“Most rugby players dream of playing for the Springboks, so to know I was considered part of that environment made me very happy.

“It ignited a belief in me that the work I had been putting in and the good performances I had been producing had been recognised.

“It was a huge motivation for me to continue doing better and improve in each match I play.”

As for his memorable outing against New Zealand, he says: “Everyone grows up watching the Springboks against the All Blacks, so watching the Haka and actually experiencing it was an unreal moment for me.”

Mahashe is clearly a very dedicated young man as he reveals when outlining his approach to his job.

“For me, it’s having friends that are not athletes and being able to say no to them whenever they want to go out during the week,” he said.

“It’s knowing your why and what makes you perform on the weekend.

“My younger self would be very proud that I kept going. Even on the days that it was tough, I kept going and kept pushing.”

He continued: “My game really revolves around bringing energy to the team. I’m always going to give my all on the field, whichever game it is, no matter the scoreboard, if we’re losing or winning.

“I want people to remember me as a guy that played rugby to have fun and to enjoy it.

“My family calls me every day, to make sure I am good and them doing that helps me remind myself why I’m doing this.”

As for what makes the Lions tick as a side, he says: “I think it’s the love we have for each other and the willingness to work for each other all the time.

“We are not only playing for ourselves, we are playing for everyone in Johannesburg. It means a lot. We really love putting in a performance for the supporters.

“I think the highlight for me so far was winning the South African Shield last season. Since I’ve been at the Lions, I’ve always wanted to win a trophy. So to win my first one was a very special moment.”

He added: “The leaders here make it very easy for us youngsters to feel part of the team. So I am fully settled and comfortable in the side.

“We have very good loose forwards here and, as a youngster, I obviously learn from the older guys. I’m around people who can mentor me. There is a lot that I learn and take from them at every training session.

“The way I play and the game that we play at the Lions is very suited for loose-forwards like me. The style of play here is the best for my abilities.

“I’d like to stay fit and injury free as the season goes on and just get better. There are parts of my game that I think I can still improve on.”

The DHL Stormers will be looking to make amends for the low point of last season when they welcome the table-topping Hollywoodbets Sharks to Cape Town for a “Test match” showdown on Saturday.

John Dobson’s team were beaten twice by the Sharks in the BKT URC in the space of seven dark days back in January, losing 30-19 at home and then 36-24 in Durban a week later.

So they will be on a revenge mission at a packed DHL Stadium this weekend having selected a star-studded squad for the big South African derby.

“It was our low point of last season losing those two games to the Sharks,” admitted Dobson.

“We had the ignominy of losing to them at home. We didn’t even get a losing bonus point at home against a team that would have been lying tenth in the log or something.”

The Sharks will head for Cape Town in a very different spot in the league this time around.

They are currently sitting pretty at the top of the table as the only team to have picked up maximum points from the opening two rounds of BKT URC matches, beating the Ospreys (41-24) and champions Leinster Rugby (26-20) in Durban.

“It’s a confident Sharks team,” said Dobson.

“It’s Bok against Bok. It’s going to be one of those derbies.

“There are lots of reasons to buy tickets this week.

“Maybe last season we saw the Bulls as the big thing and were a bit soft on the Sharks. They weren’t flagged.

“I think this game is going to have the feel of a classic derby.

“I am not worried about raising the players. I am not worried about us being flat at all.

“It feels to me like a different group – highly motivated, focused, well led.”

Dobson has named eight Springboks in his starting XV, with the likes of Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu, Damian Willemse, Cobus Reinach and Paul de Villiers coming into the side, while there are a further three on the bench.

“With the respect we are showing the derby, the respect we are showing the Sharks and on the back of last season, we have gone with the strongest team we could possibly go,” he said.

“We are pretty much at as full a roster as we could have hoped for.

“It’s one of those games that we dream about in the year, a local derby against a Sharks team that is doing really well.

“We are welcoming back all our guys we are so proud of from the Springboks team.

“It’s a local derby at the best time to play rugby, 4pm on a Saturday afternoon at a heaving DHL Stadium.

“It’s going to be something very special, so we are super excited.

“This is as good a local derby as you are going to get.

“If you look at the quality of players across both teams, these are the guys who were doing the country so proud a few weeks ago and now they are going toe to toe.

“It will be the very best of South African rugby. It will be like a Test match out there. It’s going to be a special occasion.”

The Stormers will also be looking to make amends for last weekend’s 17-13 defeat away to Edinburgh Rugby when the lineout proved their Achilles heel as they lost no fewer than 11 throw-ins.

“All our key stats were better than the week before against Connacht,” said Dobson.

“Tackle dominance, line speed, post contact metres, 22 conversion rate were all up from the win in Galway.

“There was just the one thing that went wrong.”

As for the likelihood of the lineout improving this week, he said: “I just think with the level of disappointment, frustration and desperation we felt, it will be better.

“It has to be. We will lose this game if we lose six-plus lineouts.

“The top two contesting teams in the competition are Edinburgh and the Sharks. It’s a challenge.”