They may have been on the receiving end of a thumping defeat last season and with just a solitary victory in their last eight meetings, but Ospreys will travel to defending champions Leinster eager to capitalise on the hosts’ severely depleted squad.

This weekend’s visitors succumbed to a 52-7 drubbing against Leo Cullen’s side last season, extending their miserable record against a Leinster team who come into this game buoyed by their opening round success at Benetton.

No fewer than 14 of their squad are currently on international duty in Japan, but these absences failed to hinder them in Round One as a young side eased to a 32-27 triumph in Italy.

Ospreys – who went down to a 38-14 defeat at Ulster last weekend – will be aware of the size of their challenge, travelling to a ground that has become something of a fortress over the past four Guinness PRO14 seasons.

🔵 @leinsterrugby have lost at home only 3️⃣ times since 2015 😳

But @ospreys travel to the RDS fortress in the hope that the province’s depleted side may show some weakness…

Score predictions??#GuinnessPRO14 R2 PREVIEW ➡️ https://t.co/wWUfuouUcf pic.twitter.com/wFfvLqX2t8

— PRO14 RUGBY (@PRO14Official) October 3, 2019

Kick-off: RDS Arena, Leinster | 19:35 UK, Friday 4 October

How to watch: Live on eir Sport 1, Premier Sports 2, DAZN, SuperSport 2, TG4

Players to watch out for: Dave Kearney (Leinster), Olly Cracknell (Ospreys)

Despite their numerically weakened squad as a result of the World Cup, Leinster still boast a vast array of attacking talent.

And look no further than wing Dave Kearney, whose late hat-trick heroics last week helped his side overhaul a 27-22 deficit in Italy with 20 minutes remaining.

He will be hoping to emulate his clinical deeds back at the RDS Arena, against an Ospreys defence who conceded an alarming four tries in Wales in Round One.

For the visitors, flanker Cracknell was one of the few Ospreys players to impress last weekend, making 13 tackles and showing occasional glimpses of dynamism and enterprise.

Cracknell is an experienced campaigner for the Welsh side, making 80 appearances since his 2014 debut and hoping to use all of that Guinness PRO14 nous in what promises to be a tough game for Allen Clarke’s team.

Key stat: Leinster have lost just three home games since 2015, a record that renders the RDS a formidable place to go for any Guinness PRO14 side.

Leinster XV: Hugh Keenan, Fergus McFadden, Rory O’Loughlin, Joe Tomane, James Lowe, Ross Byrne, Jamison Gibson-Park; Peter Dooley, Ronan Kelleher, Michael Bent, Devin Toner, Scott Fardy ©, Josh Murphy, Will Connors, Caelan Doris

Replacements: James Tracy, Michael Milne, Vakh Adbaladze, Ross Molony, Max Deegan, Rowan Osborne, Harry Byrne, Conor O’Brien

Ospreys XV: Cai Evans, Luke Morgan, Scott Williams, Tiaan Thomas-Wheeler, Keelan Giles, Luke Price, Shaun Venter; Rhodri Jones, Sam Parry, Tom Botha, Dan Lydiate ©, Lloyd Ashley, Olly Cracknell, Sam Cross, Dan Baker

Replacements: Scott Otten, Gareth Thomas, Gheorge Gajion, Ben Glynn, Gareth Evans, Matthew Aubrey, Tom Williams, Hanno Dirksen

Cardiff City Stadium will play host to the 2020 Guinness PRO14 Final on June 20 as one of the most exciting days in the club rugby calendar comes to Wales!

General sale tickets are available from http://bit.ly/PRO14Cardiff2020 and prices start at just £13 for concessions and £26 for adults (subject to booking fees), that’s a 15% early bird discount. Family ticket (2 adults / 2 children) prices begin at £64 and fans are encouraged to buy early to get the best value tickets.