Retiring Halfpenny set for final game in Wales

Leigh Halfpenny is set to make one final appearance in Wales after being named in the Cardiff squad for the crucial United Rugby Championship (URC) match against Stormers on Friday (19:45 BST).

The former Wales and British and Irish Lions full-back has been named on the replacements bench for the regular-season finale at the Arms Park.

Halfpenny, 37, has announced he will retire at the end of the season.

He is now set to get a chance to feature in one final home game after Cardiff suffered backline injuries to Wales duo Callum Sheedy and Josh Adams.

Cardiff know victory against the South African side will guarantee a URC play-off spot.

Cardiff are desperate to avoid history repeating itself, after they missed out on finishing in the top eight and reaching the play-offs last season by just one point to fellow Welsh side Scarlets.

The Arms Park side know a victory against Stormers this weekend will guarantee a top-half finish and erase the painful memories of a year ago.

“It is always a discussion point, basically not recently so much, but especially in the beginning,” said Cardiff head coach Corniel van Zyl.

“We think about going forward and collecting every point because at the end we know it will be close and that's exactly where we are this year.

“It was disappointing, but it's also another chance for us to keep it in our own hands.”

Cardiff faltered last season away from home, but will be able to clinch a play-off place by defeating Stormers at the Arms Park.

The Blue and Blacks' home record has been impressive this season, having won nine of 10 games in the Welsh capital.

“It is massive because we know how the atmosphere looks like at Arms Park,” said Van Zyl.

“There's not a lot of things more exciting than a Friday night in Cardiff and the crowd can have a massive influence on this game.”

Stormers are chasing a first win in Cardiff this Friday.

"We have never won at the Arms Park, so it's a problematic game for us," said Stormers head coach John Dobson.

"It's a tough place to play. It feels like everything is on top of you and there is no room."

After seven months of league action, the race for the URC top eight has gone the distance with five teams battling for four spots.

With Glasgow, Stormers, Leinster and Bulls having booked their play-off places, Lions, Munster, Cardiff and Ulster are currently in the remaining spots with ninth-placed Connacht chasing hard.

There are three crucial games on Friday night with Connacht away at Edinburgh or Ulster achieve at home to Glasgow, while Munster host Lions on Saturday.

Victory against second-placed Stormers - which would be Cardiff's 11th of the league campaign - would seal a play-off place, regardless of what happens elsewhere.

Stormers also have something on this game as they lie just a point behind table-topping Glasgow Warriors.

They have already booked a home quarter-final and are now looking to pave the way for a Cape Town semi-final by finishing in the top two.

"It's a big game for us because it can give us a path to more home play-offs or certainly the semi-final," said Dobson.

"You see from this competition that home advantage is so important.”

Dobson says Cardiff have surprised him this season by staying in the top eight.

"I kept expecting them to fall away given their squad, but they have been top eight throughout and got good results," said Dobson.

"They have been competitive in every game they have played."

Sheedy and Adams both suffered injuries during the 40-17 defeat against Glasgow last weekend.

Adams failed a head injury assessment while Sheedy suffered a hamstring problem, with centre Rory Jennings and fly-half Ioan Lloyd named to start.

Cardiff lock Josh McNally is missing because of his Royal Air Force commitments, with George Nott starting in the second row alongside Rory Thornton.

The starting props have been rotated with Danny Southworth and Javan Sebastian starting and Rhys Barratt and Keiron Assiratti moving to the bench.

Stormers include South Africa fly-half Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu, who is the league's joint top scorer with 147 points.

"He is a generational player, we are going to enjoy him for a while to come," said Dobson.

"He has grown up very quickly from being the X-factor, playing off the cuff guy, to taking the responsibility of driving the team.

"You think it's all this natural ability, but his work ethic and detail is magnificent."

Cardiff: Winnett; Beetham, B Thomas, Jennings, Bowen; I Lloyd, Mulder; Southworth, Belcher (capt), Sebastian, Nott, Thornton, Botham, D Thomas, Basham.

Replacements: D Hughes, Barratt, Assiratti, Lawrence, E Lloyd, E Bevan, S Emanuel, Halfpenny.

Stormers: Willemse; Hartzenberg, Simelane, Roche, Zas; Feinberg-Mngomezulu, Khan; Mchunu, Venter, Fouche (capt), Smith, R van Heerden, P de Villiers, B-J Dixon, Roos.

Replacements: Kotze, Kebble, Porthen, Moerat, Theunissen, Morabe, Ungerer, Matthee.

Referee: Andrew Brace (Ireland)

Assistant referees: Ben Connor (Wales), Lucas Yendle (Wales).

TMO: Olly Hodges (Ireland).