Reinforcements are on their way. Following the seismic Springbok World Cup win the global showpiece is now done and dusted and if you enjoyed watching the best players the globe has to offer then fear not, 116 of them are on their way back to the Guinness PRO14. Many are back already and have made huge contributions in Round 4 and 5 wins, with Wales’ semi-final superstars due to be the latest to return – we assessed which clubs are going to be most boosted. GLASGOW WARRIORS – 16 16 players?! Yes, that is a huge amount to lose for any club in the rugby world and there was no doubt that it would impact Glasgow Warriors’ start, Dave Rennie’s men losing three of the first four but most recently putting 50 on Isuzu Southern Kings with some stars back. The best thing about missing 16 players? You get 16 to return, and on Friday night we saw Fiji flyer Niko Matawalu, Canadian arch-finisher DTH van der Merwe and Scotland’s Pete Horne, Adam Hastings, George Horne and Zander Fagerson all cutting up a rug. Some who were also key out in Japan – Scott Cummings, Jonny Gray and Sam Johnson – are still filtering back, meaning Glasgow could start to fly. 📽️ Catch up with the highlights from Friday night's 50 - 0 victory over the Southern Kings at Scotstoun pic.twitter.com/OWpyju6jcN— Glasgow Warriors (@GlasgowWarriors) November 4, 2019 BENETTON – 15 Giving up one less player than Glasgow to the World Cup was Benetton with 15 and their narrative has followed a similar pattern, losing their first three but winning in Rounds 4 and 5 with their world stars returning. Most of course were with Italy, the exception the incredible Nasi Manu’s stint with Tonga, and they’re back pulling the strings already, the likes of Jayden Hayward, Tommaso Benvenuti, Tommaso Allan, Seb Negri and Braam Steyn all excellent in the 18-16 win over Edinburgh. SCARLETS – 14 Given that Scarlets have won four in five matches to go well in Conference B and now with 14 huge players returning their start to the season looks exceptional, don’t bet against them going very far this season. Samoa centre Kieron Fonotia was back in a starting shirt at the weekend but away from that start to salivate Scarlets fans – world class stars Gareth Davies, Jonathan Davies, Hadleigh Parkes and plenty of their friends are on their way back. LEINSTER – 14 Also with 14 to return are Leinster and the story at the Irish province is a similar one to Scarlets, with a great start (five wins from five) and some huge, huge names to return. Leinster’s squad depth has proved remarkably deep and they’ll soon be able to throw into the mix some of the globe’s best – Tadhg Furlong, Johnny Sexton and James Ryan likely at the front of the queue.
