Bath must be wary of wounded Montferrand

John Connolly has warned his Bath side that Montferrand will be desperate to rescue their season in today's Parker Pen Challenge…

John Connolly has warned his Bath side that Montferrand will be desperate to rescue their season in today's Parker Pen Challenge Cup semi-final, second leg. (Sky Sports 3, kick-off: 1.0 p.m.)

Bath may hold a 14-point advantage over their French opponents after the first encounter two weeks ago, but coach Connolly insists the return will be far from a pushover.

The English Premiership leaders staged a thrilling fightback to beat Montferrand 29-15 at home.

"I believe Montferrand's defeat (in the French championship) last weekend means that they miss out on Heineken Cup qualification domestically, but the Parker Pen competition is their lifeline in that respect," said Connolly.

READ MORE

Bath welcome back outhalf Olly Barkley and wing Simon Danielli as respective replacements for Chris Malone and Alex Crockett.

But prop David Flatman is nursing an Achilles' injury, so his place in the front row goes to David Barnes.