After World Cup pain provinces aim for domestic bliss

The show must go on.

For a while, we thought the opening weekend of the BKT United Rugby Championship might get lost in the euphoria of Ireland's run to the World Cup final, but after the heartbreak of the quarter-final defeat to New Zealand a week ago, the return of the URC is a warm shoulder to cry on.

A new season, new kits, new players and in the case of Ulster, a new pitch at Kingspan Stadium.

It feels like a lifetime ago we saw Munster’s Thomond Park homecoming in the late May sunshine after a sensational final against the DHL Stormers in Cape Town.

For those who missed out on the play-offs, it’s been the longest off-season imaginable; almost six months to the day since their last game in anger.

The URC is the last of the major northern hemisphere leagues to return for their new campaign.

The Top14 in France managed to squeeze in three rounds of games before the World Cup even started and will resume again next week, while the Premiership opened its doors for the new year a week ago.

It’s the third year of the URC in its current guise, and this version of the competition looks like being the best we’ve seen in the 22 years since the Celtic League was born.

There are issues yet to be addressed: it's hard to see a Welsh side genuinely competing for the title in the near future given their financial issues, while the travel schedule for the South African sides puts them at a real disadvantage at times.

The format of the 2023/24 season is largely the same, but with a couple of minor tweaks. Like previous seasons there will still be 18 rounds of regular-season games, with the top eight sides advancing to the quarters, semis and Grand Final, which is to be hosted by the top-ranked side.

The first change will be around the