By JOHN FALLON

Connacht, buoyed by an impressive opening away trip to Munster which yielded a first-ever try bonus point at Thomond Park, will hope to notch their first win of this year’s URC in their first home game when they host the Sharks from Durban in a sold-out clash tomorrow (7.35pm, live on TG4).

Fans who weren’t at the recent Sale Sharks preseason friendly will get their first glimpse of how the redeveloped works at the Sportsground are progressing as the now renamed Dexcom Stadium takes shape.

The former Clan Terrace has disappeared and there is just hoarding on that side of the ground as the new stand rises into the sky. It is due to be completed around Christmas 2025. A reduced capacity of around 4,000 will be accommodated on the other side of the ground and behind both goals.

The squad, based in prefabs near the graveyard wall, have been training for a couple of months now in what is essentially a building site, but head coach Pete Wilkins said they are coping well and he has no fears about the matchday atmosphere being impacted as work continues on the €40m development.

“Yeah, it’s three-sided and the side with the old Clan Terrace is just hoarding now so it will be different,” said Wilkins. “I’m not concerned, and I say that with full respect for the really special atmosphere that was always generated by the Clan Terrace.

“But I think the key thing is that we’ll have the same supporters in the building. They might be in a slightly different spot, but they’ll be there with all the energy and passion as usual. And I think the key thing is us and our performance as a team. If we can give them enough to get excited about the atmosphere will take care of itself.

“I’m looking forward to it. I can’t wait. We’re sold out from my understanding and that will add another dose of energy to the team as we go into it.”

He said that the key now is to back up that encouraging display in Limerick on Saturday with a win against the newly crowned Currie Cup champions.

“The big test for me is this week against the Sharks. We’ve shown in the past we can deliver the intense and emotional performances against interprovincial opponents,” added Wilkins.

“But then it is the following week that’s raised questions about our consistency. And I’ve been really open with you guys about that because I’ve been really open with the squad about it too. It was a huge test for us away in Thomond Park obviously but this is an even bigger test for us this week.

“It’s not just a dangerous Sharks team coming to us who have already won the Currie Cup in pre-season, they are battle-hardened. But it’s the week after an interpro, and a good performance in an interpro, despite the result, so this is the one that really interests me and the one that really excites me.”

Wilkins says he has no issue with the Emerging Ireland tour to South Africa, which saw seven of his squad leave this week for the three-match tour against club sides which will see them miss the URC games against the Sharks, Scarlets, and Ulster.

Sean Jansen, Jack Aungier and Darragh Murray all started against Munster on Saturday, while loosehead Jordan Duggan (49 appearances) and scrum-half Matthew Devine (5) are also key players. In-form winger Shayne Bolton had also been selected but has been ruled out with a knee injury picked up against Munster and has been replaced his one of Connacht’s Irish Olympic sevens players Chay Mullins. Irish U-20 back for the past two years Hugh Gavin is the seventh Connacht player to be selected.

“I’m at peace with it. I think the tour itself is a really good thing for Irish rugby,” said Wilkins. “I think we saw from the growth of the players who went on that trip two years ago of how it set them up for success in terms of provincial and some of them for their international careers. So, I fully support the tour.

“For me it’s not disruptive because we have had really open lines of communication with the Irish management, whether it is David Humphreys, Andy Farrell and Simon Easterby more recently, he assumed responsibility for the tour.

“We have known all the way along in terms of the long list of players who are on their radar over the last couple of months and as that list has shortened they have been up front and they have listened to our concerns around position groups or depth in terms of who we have got to replace the guys they might be looking at.

“So, we are working together with them on that. Obviously it changes the dynamic of who you have got available but we have to adapt and it will give other guys an opportunity and those players will come back better.

Pictured: Connacht players after the final whistle in Thomond Park on Saturday. Photo: Brendan Moran /Sportsfile.