The Morning Sports Briefing

Sam Burgess to start in Bath midfield and Peter Stringer to play a role; Alan Quinlan on Leinster’s search for a ruthless streak; Conor McGregor’s confidence and Seán Moran on GAA player welfare

Rugby: European quarter-finals

Former rugby league star Sam Burgess is set to play in Bath's midfield with England star Jonathan Joseph in Saturday's Champion Cup quarter-final against Leinster in Dublin.

And Bath coach Mike Ford said that Peter Stringer will play some part for the English side at the Aviva Stadium.

“Look, you squeeze that toothpaste! We must get the best out of him and there is still a lot left in Peter for us this season and somebody else next season,” said Ford.

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In his weekly column, Alan Quinlan wonders if Matt O'Connor's Leinster side have a real identity like those that Joe Schmidt and Michael Cheika sent out on the field.

And Quinlan says they must find a ruthless streak or their season could unravel further.

He writes: “They give teams too many opportunities to come back at them and don’t kill them off when they have the chance. We’ve had year after year of Leinster teams who were ruthless. This Leinster team is not ruthless.

One Leinster player who is looking forward to facing Bath is backrow Jordi Murphy. Gerry Thornley talks to the 23-year-old about how he has developed his game at both provincial and international level.

Connacht welcome back Robbie Henshaw for the first time since the middle of January for their tough Challenge Cup quarter-final trip to play Gloucester at Kingsholm. It's a huge boost to Pat Lam's side with Bundee Aki still out of contention for a midfield spot.

Gaelic football: Presidential backing 

GAA president Aogán Ó Fearghail is open to any potential rule changes which may help improve the game's quality, but he also believes the desire to win a game and the need to entertain the crowd are not mutually exclusive.

GAA: Player welfare

In his weekly column, Seán Moran says the GAA must ensure a balance in the treatment of inter-county players.

International Rules: Ireland v Australia

Joe Kernan will take charge of Ireland for the 2015-16 games against Australia and he has some interesting takes on the future of both the hybrid game and Gaelic football itself.

UFC: Title fight build-up

Conor McGregor was in Dublin on Tuesday for the final leg of the promotion tour for his UFC featherweight world title fight with Brazilian Jose Aldo in Las Vegas in July.

Johnny Watterson was there and observed a more restrained, if just as confident, McGregor tell a crowd of 2,500 that he will become a world champion.

McGregor said “I think I’ll be too strong for him. I’ll be too powerful for him,” he says. “I feel everyone he’s fought before has been afraid. He’s made a career out of beating short stocky American wrestlers who are not too good on their feet, who are intimidated. Me, I’m going to go straight for him and I’m going to put him away.”

Soccer: Cash windfall for Irish clubs

Emmet Malone reports on the increased prize money in Uefa competitions from next season, with Dundalk set to earn a minimum of €550,000 in the Champions League.