Faletau and Adams back for Cardiff at Northampton

Cardiff's task against free-flowing Northampton on return to Champions Cup made bigger by tough schedule. Josh Adams and Taulupe Faletau toured South Africa with the British and Irish Lions in 2021 Wales internationals Taulupe Faletau and Josh Adams are in line for their first appearances of the season when Cardiff return to the Champions Cup against Northampton. After two seasons in the Challenge Cup, the Blue and Blacks return to the top tier of European competition at Franklin's Gardens on Sunday (17:30 BST) against the English champions. Northampton are fresh from running in 11 tries against Bath in the Prem and Cardiff's task is made even tougher by their schedule. They must manage their squad with a five-day turnaround from the Saints fixture to a United Rugby Championship (URC) game at the Arms Park against Sharks, who are at Lyon in the Challenge Cup on Saturday.

"It's a challenge. How it happened I wouldn't know," said Cardiff head coach Corniel van Zyl. "There are a few questions asked about the five-day turnaround, which ultimately becomes very complex for the players to recover and then go again in that short time. "It sometimes happens in World Cups with bigger squads and it's just something to manage." Faletau was poised to make his first appearance since suffering a shoulder injury at March