WELSH rugby will play its part in welcoming the Italian invasion into the Magners League when the new season kicks off.
The Scarlets are to provide the opening opposition for Benetton Treviso at the Stadio Monigo on the first weekend at the beginning of September.
Treviso are one of two Italian additions to the league, with new franchise Aironi Rugby, swelling the competition to a 12-team event as it heads into its 10th anniversary campaign
The Scarlets will be the first Welsh team to take on Aironi, who travel to Llanelli on the third weekend of the season.
Treviso, for their part, have recruited Kiwi wing Joe Maddock from Bath, with Alessandro Zanni, Luke McLean and Gonzalo Garcia among their international contingent.
They head for Swansea on the second weekend of the season to take on reigning champions the Ospreys at the Liberty Stadium.
England V Scotland Hospitality
Scotland V England Hospitality
The opening fixture at Ravenhill, on the weekend of September 3-5, will mark a return to familiar territory for Ospreys try-machine Tommy Bowe, who spent five years with Ulster before heading for Wales in 2008.
Bowe was one of the Ospreys’ two try scorers in their 17-12 grand final victory over Leinster in Dublin in May when they clinched the Magners crown.
After hosting Italian champions Treviso in their opening home fixture in round two, they will face Heineken Cup rivals Munster at Thomond Park on the weekend of September 17.
Reigning Amlin Challenge Cup champions the Blues will be seeking revenge for their home defeat last season when they host Edinburgh in their opening game at the Cardiff City Stadium.
Grand final runners-up Leinster travel to another of last season’s play-off sides, Glasgow Warriors, on the opening weekend and then host the Blues at the Royal Dublin Showground in round two.
The increase in numbers means there will be four extra rounds of matches in the league phase of the tournament.
In order to accommodate this, some games are to be played during the international windows in November and while the Six Nations championship is being played.
There will be two full rounds of matches during the autumn Test period in November, including clashes between Munster and the Scarlets, and Ospreys and Leinster.
There are also two rounds of games on Six Nations weekends in February on the weekends that Wales take on Scotland and Italy respectively.
It all means the likes of the Ospreys and Blues who both take on Ulster during the championship will be without a host of players for four league fixtures.
England V Scotland Hospitality
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