Celtic League: Munster v Connacht Thomond Park, 7.35pm. On TV: Setanta Sports.
Perish the thought that either Connacht coach Michael Bradley or Munster's Declan Kidney would name their teams before the Christmas turkey has been consumed. With 11 Munster players just back from Lanzarote and doubt remaining over the secondrow Paul O'Connell, who is recovering from a broken bone in his hand, you could say Connacht are going into this meeting better prepared.
But from the outside the fixture looks like a mismatch - European giants taking on the province the IRFU would like to see disappear off their balance sheet. That, however, has not been the case in previous meetings and it can't always be put down to Connacht playing their hearts out to prove their worth and sustain their survival.
In January 2004, Munster won the match 3-0 and at the Sportsground last January it was also 3-0 to Munster in miserable conditions. But that perhaps says as much about Munster as it does about Connacht's gutsy nature. They are prepared to dog it out under any circumstances.
Connacht's recent run of bad results in the Celtic League does not sustain the argument that they have enough resources at their disposal to challenge Munster so closely again. They beat Cardiff in the opening match in the autumn but since then have been firing blanks in this competition, although they have shown a better side in the European Challenge Cup. Last week's 22-21 win over Worcester in the Challenge Cup ended a three-match losing run.
What Connacht may want to forget going into the match is their 44-19 defeat at home to their neighbours in October and the underlying probability that if all goes right for Connacht and all goes right for Munster, then Munster will win. That is borne out by the fact that Connacht's last win on Munster soil was 11-9, in 1986 at Thomond Park.
Kidney should also be thinking about the Heineken European Cup, which kicks to life in early January and a run of positive results is what he'll be looking for as a way of turning around a difficult pool situation into something more upbeat.
O'Connell will be an immense presence if he returns, although, the team will be particularly looking for him to be fit for European Cup and Ireland duty as a priority. If it is not tonight then he will most likely take part next week when Munster meet Leinster in the RDS.
This time out, in front of a large holiday crowd, you cannot see the home side, having lost just once in their last 20 games in all competitions, hacking out a 3-0 win. Connacht will show typical bottle and ability but the status quo should remain intact with a home win.
