Leinster name team to face Scarlets

Shaun Berne will make his competitive debut for the province and will partner Fergus McFadden at centre for the trip to Llanelli. Chris Keane and Jonathan Sexton form the half-back partnership, with Ireland internationals Shane Horgan and Girvan Dempsey starting at right wing and full-back respectively with Isa Nacewa continuing on the left wing.

The team is led once more by Leo Cullen who makes his 118th Leinster appearance and he will partner Leinster's most capped player Malcolm O'Kelly who will be lining out for the 167th time.

Kevin McLaughlin starts in a back-row unit which includes Shane Jennings and Stephen Keogh. Mike Ross is named on the replacements bench amongst four recent Leinster Academy graduates. A decision on replacement hooker will be made closer to kick off.

LEINSTER:

15: Girvan Dempsey
14: Shane Horgan
13: Fergus McFadden
12: Shaun Berne
11: Isa Nacewa
10: Jonathan Sexton
9: Chris Keane

1: Cian Healy
2: John Fogarty
3: Stan Wright
4: Leo Cullen CAPTAIN
5: Malcolm O'Kelly
6: Kevin McLaughlin
7: Shane Jennings VICE CAPTAIN
8: Stephen Keogh

REPLACEMENTS:

16: Bernard Jackman / Jason Harris-Wright
17: Mike Ross
18: Devin Toner
19: Sean O'Brien
20: Paul O'Donohoe
21: Simon Keogh
22: Niall Morris

REFEREE: Neil Paterson (SRU), ASSISTANT REFEREES: Jon Mason (WRU), Colin Kirkhouse (WRU), TMO: Tony Rowlands (WRU)

Speaking ahead of Leinster's Magners League opener against the Scarlets in Parc y Scarlets, Leinster captain LEO CULLEN said that the squad are determined to get off to a strong start and build momentum...

"The first weekend of matches is always an exciting time and the older you get, the more excited you become around this time of year. You work hard in pre-season to get the chance to play and it's the start of a busy period for us as we're away from home three games out of the first four.

"I was amongst the first group who were back after the summer break and over the following weeks we welcomed back those players who were involved with the Churchill Cup and then the Lions. It will all come together over the next three or four weeks and I know how eager the players are to get back playing.

"The new additions to the squad are settling in well. Shaun Berne is a very experienced player and is a good leader on the field, with a calm head. Mike (Ross) is a very strong guy and has done brilliantly over the last few seasons over in the Premiership. After getting his first Ireland cap earlier in the summer he'll have aspirations to do well with Leinster and push on into the Ireland reckoning. Nathan (Hines) and Redser (Eoin Reddan) haven't played yet but they're hugely experienced and I'm sure that both will make a big impact, along with Richardt Strauss, over the coming months.

"I have been impressed by the quality of the younger players coming out of the Academy this year. It's refreshing that so many players are putting their hands up for selection and that level of competition can only be a good thing.

"It is strange that we're facing two of our three Heineken Cup opponents within a week of each other, but I don't think that either game will have much of a bearing once that competition begins. We're not thinking any further ahead than this week.

"The attitude from all the players over the summer has been good and we're keen as a group to push on and become more consistent in both competitions. We had a good pre-season camp in the south of France followed by the game against London Irish last weekend so we've had a pretty good build up, but we need to start the Magners League strongly.

"Our form in the earlier rounds last year wasn't as consistent as we would have liked and it ultimately cost us. We're determined to push on and the Scarlets will be dangerous opponents. They're a great club with great traditions and we know that we will need to face up to the passion and skill levels that they will bring to the game.

"We were lucky to win both of our games against them last year, but this is a fresh start and we're expecting another tough test."