**The race for the Guinness PRO14 quarter-finals is set to crank up with Finals Series chasers Connacht and Cardiff Blues going head to head in Galway on Saturday night.** The two sides will be desperate to secure one of the coveted top three places in Conference B but sit on the fringes after 10 matches. Connacht lie in fourth, five points adrift of third-placed Munster and will be aiming to end a run of five straight defeats in all competitions. But Cardiff are breathing down their necks as they are just one place and one point behind the men in green and know a victory could put them firmly into the mix for a top-three spot. Connacht have been boosted by the return of two Ireland internationals as Ultan Dillane comes into the second row and Dave Heffernan starts at hooker. Wing Hallam Amos has overcome an ankle injury to line-up for Cardiff as he joins Dan Fish and Jason Harries in the back three. Flanker Josh Turnbull will make his 100th Guinness PRO14 appearance. **Kick-off:** 7.35pm **How to watch:** Live on Premier Sports 1, TG4, DAZN and pro14.tv **Players to watch out for:** Jack Carty v Jason Tovey With heavy rain and gales set to hit the Sportsground, the territorial battle will be all-important in deciding this clash. A lot of focus will be on how fly-halves Tovey and Carty manage the conditions and move their side around the field. Cardiff Blues’s Carty will be disappointed to have missed out on Ireland selection for the Guinness Six Nations and this will be a chance to push his case. The 27-year-old has racked up 27 points in nine matches this term and Connacht will hope he will be on song from the tee against Connacht. His opposite number, Tovey, has played second fiddle to Jarrod Evans for much of this season. But with Evans away with Wales Tovey will be looking to seize his opportunity in the No.10 jersey and guide Connacht to victory. The 30-year-old is not short of experience having made 176 appearances in the Guinness PRO14 and is just 49 points away from hitting the 1,000 mark. **Key stat:** Four points or less have separated Cardiff Blues’s past four Guinness PRO14 matches with the Blues winning three of those so they are well-versed in tense tussles. **Connacht:** Tiernan O’Halloran, John Porch, Kyle Godwin, Peter Robb, Matt Healy, Jack Carty, Kieran Marmion, Paddy McAllister, Dave Heffernan, Finlay Bealham, Ultan Dillane, Gavin Thornbury, Paul Boyle, Colby Fainga’a, Jarrad Butler (CAPT) **Replacements:** Shane Delahunt, Denis Buckley, Dominic Robertson-McCoy, Joe Maksymiw, Eoin McKeon, Caolin Blade, Conor Fitzgerald, Tom Daly **Cardiff Blues:** Dan Fish; Jason Harries, Rey Lee-Lo, Garyn Smith, Hallam Amos; Jason Tovey, Lloyd Williams (CAPT), Rhys Gill, Liam Belcher, Dmitri Arhip, Filo Paulo, James Ratti, Josh Turnbull, Olly Robinson, Will Boyde **Replacements:** Kristian Dacey, Corey Domachowski, Scott Andrews, Seb Davies, Nick Williams, Lewis Jones, Ben Thomas, Ryan Edwards
