The draw for this season’s British & Irish Cup has been confirmed, with the Ospreys Premiership Select drawn in Pool 3 with Cornish Pirates, London Irish and Connacht Eagles.
The competition will once again run parallel with the region’s European campaign, and gets underway on the weekend of 14/15/16 October when London Irish, relegated from the Aviva Premiership, visit Ospreylia.
The following weekend sees the Ospreys PS head to the south west of England to face the Pirates.
The December double header then pitches Guinness PRO12 rivals together with a trip to Ireland to face Connacht Eagles in Round 3 before the return fixture a week later.
Going into 2017, Cornish Pirates come to Wales on the weekend of 13/14/15 January before an away game versus London Irish rounds off the campaign.
Home venues and ticketing arrangements are still to be confirmed.
British & Irish Cup 2016/17 pools and fixtures
Pool 1
Jersey Reds
London Scottish
Ulster 'A'
Cardiff Blues Premiership Select
Pool 2
London Welsh
Doncaster Knights
Munster 'A'
Rotherham Titans
Pool 3
Cornish Pirates
London Irish
Ospreys Premiership Select
Connacht Eagles
Pool 4
Leinster 'A'
Scarlets Premiership Select
Nottingham Rugby
Richmond
Pool 5
Yorkshire Carnegie
Bedford Blues
Dragons Premiership Select
Ealing Trailfinders
Fixtures
Round 1 – October 14/15/16
Pool 1: Ulster 'A' v Jersey Reds
Pool 1: Cardiff Blues Premiership Select v London Scottish
Pool 2: Rotherham Titans v Doncaster Knights
Pool 2: Munster 'A' v London Welsh
Pool 3: Connacht Eagles v Cornish Pirates
Pool 3: Ospreys Premiership Select v London Irish
Pool 4: Nottingham Rugby v Scarlets Premiership Select
Pool 4: Richmond v Leinster 'A'
Pool 5: Bedford Blues v Dragons Premiership Select
Pool 5: Ealing Trailfinders v Yorkshire Carnegie
Round 2 – October 21/22/23
Pool 1: Jersey Reds v Cardiff Blues Premiership Select
Pool 1: London Scottish v Ulster 'A'
Pool 2: Doncaster Knights v Munster 'A'
Pool 2: London Welsh v Rotherham Titans
Pool 3: Cornish Pirates v Ospreys Premiership Select
Pool 3: London Irish v Connacht Eagles
Pool 4: Scarlets Premiership Select v Richmond
Pool 4: Leinster 'A' v Nottingham Rugby
Pool 5: Dragons Premiership Select v Ealing Trailfinders
Pool 5: Yorkshire Carnegie v Bedford Blues
Round 3 – December 9/10/11
Pool 1: London Scottish v Jersey Reds
Pool 1: Ulster 'A' v Cardiff Blues Premiership Select
Pool 2: London Welsh v Doncaster Knights
Pool 2: Rotherham Titans v Munster 'A'
Pool 3: London Irish v Cornish Pirates
Pool 3: Connacht Eagles v Ospreys Premiership Select
Pool 4: Nottingham Rugby v Richmond
Pool 4: Leinster 'A' v Scarlets Premiership Select
Pool 5: Yorkshire Carnegie v Dragons Premiership Select
Pool 5: Bedford Blues v Ealing Trailfinders
Round 4 – December 16/17/18
Pool 1: Jersey Reds v London Scottish
Pool 1: Cardiff Blues Premiership Select vUlster 'A'
Pool 2: Doncaster Knights v London Welsh
Pool 2: Munster A v Rotherham Titans
Pool 3: Cornish Pirates v London Irish
Pool 3: Ospreys Premiership Select v Connacht Eagles
Pool 4: Scarlets Premiership Select v Leinster 'A'
Pool 4: Richmond v Nottingham Rugby
Pool 5: Dragons Premiership Select v Yorkshire Carnegie
Pool 5: Ealing Trailfinders v Bedford Blues
Round 5 – January 13/14/15
Pool 1: Ulster 'A' v London Scottish
Pool 1: Cardiff Blues Premiership Select v Jersey Reds
Pool 2: Rotherham Titans v London Welsh
Pool 2: Munster A v Doncaster Knights
Pool 3: Connacht Eagles v London Irish
Pool 3: Ospreys Premiership Select v Cornish Pirates
Pool 4: Nottingham Rugby v Leinster 'A'
Pool 4: Richmond v Scarlets Premiership Select
Pool 5: Bedford Blues v Yorkshire Carnegie
Pool 5: Ealing Trailfinders v Dragons Premiership Select
Round 6 – January 20/21/22
Pool 1: Jersey Reds v Ulster 'A'
Pool 1: London Scottish v Cardiff Blues Premiership Select
Pool 2: Doncaster Knights v Rotherham Titans
Pool 2: London Welsh v Munster A
Pool 3: Cornish Pirates v Connacht Eagles
Pool 3: London Irish v Ospreys Premiership Select
Pool 4: Scarlets Premiership Select v Nottingham Rugby
Pool 4: Leinster 'A' v Richmond
Pool 5: Dragons Premiership Select v Bedford Blues
Pool 5: Yorkshire Carnegie v Ealing Trailfinders
Quarter-finals: March 10/11/12
Semi-finals: March 31/April 1/April 2
Final: April 22