Wasps v Leinster: Champions Cup preview
By Tony Tighe
Last Updated: 23/01/16 2:51pm
Wasps welcome England duo James Haskell and Joe Launchbury back from injury for Saturday's must-win Champions Cup tie with Leinster.
The pair missed last weekend's last-gasp defeat in Toulon, which leaves Wasps second in Pool 5 and needing a victory to secure a quarter-final place.
Former Leinster players Jimmy Gopperth and Brendan Macken start against their former side, while Nathan Hughes and Jake Cooper-Woolley are named on the bench after recovering from injury.
Guy Thompson, who scored Wasps' try in a man-of-the-match performance against Toulon, has been ruled out for up to 12 weeks with a toe injury so Sam Jones moves from the blindside to No 8.
Dai Young's men were 33-6 victors over Leinster in round one - the Irish province's record home defeat - but the Wasps director of rugby warned they are playing against a "wounded animal" at the Ricoh Arena.
"There's a European quarter-final at stake on Saturday and I'm sure Leinster will want to come and spoil the party," said Young.
"They were pretty upset after we won in Dublin and I'm sure they will come here wanting to put the record straight. We know we are playing against a wounded animal and you don't win three European titles by accident.
"Leinster have a quality squad with internationals throughout, so we know how tough it's going to be. The big thing for us is to finish strong, with a mentality that only a win will do - it's a real cup final for us."
Leinster make 11 changes to the team that ended Bath's quarter-final hopes last Saturday, with a host of Ireland internationals returning to the starting line-up.
Johnny Sexton captains the side on his 100th Leinster start and partners Eoin Reddan at half-back, Rob Kearney comes in at full-back, while Jack McGrath, Sean Cronin and Marty Moore are named in the front-row.
Leinster have never won away at Wasps and are without a win on the road in the Champions Cup since October 2014, and Young has urged supporters to create a raucous atmosphere in Coventry.
He said: "Walking into the ground [in Toulon] alongside our supporters was amazing, the noise they made throughout the game was outstanding and certainly the appreciation our fans showed the boys after the game when they stayed to applaud the players back onto the bus, was amazing.
"We really thank them for that and ask for the same again during a crucial match for the club. The boys will certainly take their support into this quarter-final decider and will want to finish the job as much for them as for us."
Wasps: 15 Charles Piutau, 14 Josh Bassett, 13 Elliot Daly, 12 Brendan Macken, 11 Frank Halai, 10 Jimmy Gopperth, 9 Joe Simpson; 1 Matt Mullan, 2 Edd Shervington, 3 Lorenzo Cittadini, 4 Joe Launchbury, 5 Bradley Davies, 6 James Haskell (c), 7 George Smith, 8 Sam Jones.
Replacements: 16 Ashley Johnson, 17 Tom Bristow, 18 Jake Cooper-Woolley, 19 James Gaskell, 20 Nathan Hughes, 21 Dan Robson, 22 Ruaridh Jackson, 23 Rob Miller.
Leinster: 15 Rob Kearney, 14 Zane Kirchner, 13 Luke Fitzgerald, 12 Noel Reid, 11 Dave Kearney, 10 Johnny Sexton (c), 9 Eoin Reddan; 1 Jack McGrath, 2 Sean Cronin, 3 Marty Moore, 4 Devin Toner, 5 Rhys Ruddock, 6 Dominic Ryan, 7 Jordi Murphy, 8 Jamie Heaslip.
Replacements: 16 Richardt Strauss, 17 Peter Dooley, 18 Michael Bent, 19 Ross Molony, 20 Josh van der Flier, 21 Isaac Boss, 22 Cathal Marsh, 23 Ben Te'o.