Excitingly, we are at the dawn of a new era with the Guinness PRO14, as two South African sides join the best of Ireland, Wales, Scotland and Italy. An era in which Northern Hemisphere competitions actually embrace change, and it’s potentially the start of a shift to timezone-based Rugby tournaments.

South Africa is a huge Rugby market, and the two new teams will rejuvenate the league – there is noticeably more excitement about the new season than ever before, and I am intrigued to see how it all unfolds. On Superbru, there are now twice as many people playing the Pro14 Predictor game as there were for last year’s Pro12.

Predicting the first weekend in any competition is always hard, but you’d expect to see most sides at full-strength (injuries aside), and many of these matches look fairly straightforward (for now).

Munster v Treviso
It’s a gift to start off with, and it’s all about picking the margin. Munster have beaten Treviso by an average of 28 points over the last four matches home and away, and it’s likely to be something similar here. Munster by 31.

Cardiff v Edinburgh
This should be another home win, with Cardiff having beaten Edinburgh on 8 of the last 9 meetings. The influence of coach Richard Cockerill at Edinburgh will be one to watch as the season unfolds, and these two teams look fairly even on paper, so we’ll go with history and home advantage in round 1. Cardiff by 7

Ulster v Cheetahs
Also on Friday night, we’ll get our first taste of the South African involvement. The Cheetahs should be the stronger of the two franchises, and they have some real threats out wide in the shape of Makazole Mapimpi and Sergeal Petersen in particular. They’ll be facing some familiar foe in the shape of Marcell Coetzee, Jean Deysel, Charles Piutau, Christian Leali’ifano and others, and they’ll be desperate to make a big entrance to the competition. Let’s go for an upset pick. Cheetahs by 2.

Ospreys v Zebre
It’s back to the easy pickings on Saturday, where the Ospreys will thrash Zebre. Ospreys by 33.

Dragons v Leinster
The Dragons might show some improvement this season, now owned by the WRU, a new coach in Bernard Jackman and star signing Gavin Henson. Watch out for them getting going as the season progresses, but surely they can’t be Leinster on the opening weekend. Leinster by 13.

Scarlets v Kings
It’s a very tough start for what’s likely to be the weaker SA team, up against the Champions at Parc y Scarlets. It’s unlikely to be anything but a home win, and I suggest it will be fairly comfortable for the home side. Scarlets by 28

Connacht v Glasgow
Home advantage can be a significant factor in Galway, but with coach Pat Lam having left, I can’t see Connacht pushing on from their disappointing 8th place last season. In contrast, Dave Rennie takes over at Glasgow, bringing with him some Super Rugby players, and there should be sufficient quality to secure the away win in Round 1. Glasgow by 9.

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