Dave Rennie continues what could be termed the Rennie Raffle (in the absence of tombolas) in an attempt to figure out his best team for the lean times ahead when he will be deprived of most of his first choice picks by Gregor Townsend.
One man who will be present and is already a first choice after less than ten games is Callum Gibbins who will lead the team from openside. Elsewhere in the pack Jonny Gray and Zander Fagerson are absent so D’Arcy Rae gets a chance at more game time alongside Rennie’s trusted Bhatti/Turner combination, while Harley and Fagerson Jr complete the back row.
The Horne brothers have a chance to partner up at 9 and 10, with the younger very impressive against the Kings last week. Lelia Masaga will hope for more ball than he was given on his cameo last weekend (none) while the reliable combo of Grigg and Johnson pair up in midfield and will be hoping to do some damage to the at-times porous Leinster back line.
There’s plenty of heft on the bench – although not noticeably a second row player – and the welcome return of Alex Dunbar just in time for the Autumn who will need to get his sharpness up to speed, rapidly.
The visitors have sent a considerably different team to the one that dismantled the Warriors game plan quite effectively in the Champions Cup and with only Sean Cronin and Scott Fardy remaining from that side, Rennie will be hoping the result can be different too.
Glasgow: 15. Ruaridh Jackson, 14. Lelia Masaga, 13. Nick Grigg, 12. Sam Johnson, 11. Niko Matawalu, 10. Peter Horne, 9. George Horne; 1. Jamie Bhatti, 2. George Turner, 3. D’Arcy Rae, 4. Tim Swinson, 5. Scott Cummings, 6. Rob Harley, 7. Callum Gibbins (CAPT), 8. Matt Fagerson.
Replacements: 16. Pat MacArthur, 17. Alex Allan, 18. Adam Nicol, 19. Lewis Wynne, 20. Matt Smith, 21. Henry Pyrgos, 22. Alex Dunbar, 23. Leonardo Sarto.
Leinster Rugby: 15. Jordan Larmour, 14. Adam Byrne, 13. Rory O’Loughlin, 12. Conor O’Brien, 11. Dave Kearney, 10. Ross Byrne, 9. Jamison Gibson-Park; 1. Ed Byrne, 2. Seán Cronin, 3. Michael Bent, 4. Ross Molony (CAPT), 5. Mick Kearney, 6. Scott Fardy, 7. Jordi Murphy, 8. Max Deegan.
Replacements: 16. Richardt Strauss, 17. Peter Dooley, 18. Andrew Porter, 19. Josh Murphy, 20. Dan Leavy, 21. Nick McCarthy, 22. Cathal Marsh, 23. Hugo Keenan.
Referee: Stuart Berry (SARU)
Unavailable players: Adam Ashe (ankle), Brian Alanu’uise (knee), Fraser Brown (knee), Rory Hughes (shoulder), Oli Kebble (foot), Paddy Kelly (ankle), Ratu Tagive (achilles), Richie Vernon (achilles).
TV Coverage on BBC Alba, Friday 5th Nov, 7.30pm