The Irish Independent's Ruaidhri O'Connor reviews the weekend's Pro14

Rugby has been dominated by the Six Nations of late. But this weekend saw the Pro14 take precedence.

Connacht were among the key winners as they move into the Top 3 of Conference A after a 25-17 win over Cheetahs.

The Irish Independent's Ruaidhri O'Connor joined us on Monday Night Rugby and touched on Connacht.

"The Connacht game is the one you can read most into," he said in reference to how many leading players were available.

"And it probably had the most significance as well. They got themselves out of it very impressively. It was a tight game.

Positivity

"They tend to pick up a lot of losing bonus points over the course of a season. So for them to come out the right side of a game like that in difficult conditions, was something they'll take a lot of solace from."

He also added that this is the time of year when Connacht's season "will be won and lost".

"That was a really good start for them last weekend," he continued.

"They look like a really good team and such a different outfit to the one they were last year. Tom Farrell is a joy to watch, and [Jack] Carty is reborn. It shows the positivity [Andy] Friend has brought and it has rubbed off on the players."

Ruaidhri also cast an eye towards Ireland's next Six Nations clash against Conor O'Shea's Italy. With some key players set to be rested, Ruaidhri looked at the squad depth in key positions.