Before then of course there is a wealth of international action with the Tri Nations taking us up to the annual feast that is the end of year internationals.

For those Lions hopefuls, the 2009 Six Nations will be the key proving ground with the Home Nations' stars hoping to catch the eye of coach Ian McGeechan.

The Six Nations is also a key time of year for all fans of the game - the 2009 fixtures are as follows:

Saturday 7 February; England v Italy (Twickenham)
Saturday 7 February; Ireland v France (Croke Park)
Sunday 8 February; Scotland v Wales (Murrayfield)

Saturday 14 February; France v Scotland (Stade de France)
Saturday 14 February; Wales v England (Millennium Stadium)
Sunday 15 February; Italy v Ireland (Flaminio Stadium) 

Friday 27 February; France v Wales (Stade de France)
Saturday 28 February; Scotland v Italy (Murrayfield)
Saturday 28 February; Ireland v England (Croke Park)

Saturday 14 March; Italy v Wales (Flaminio Stadium)
Saturday 14 March; Scotland v Ireland (Murrayfield)
Sunday 15 March; England v France (Twickenham)

Saturday 21 March; Italy v France (Flaminio Stadium)
Saturday 21 March; England v Italy (Twickenham)
Saturday 21 Marcn; Wales v Ireland (Millennium Stadium)

+ Click here for complete Six Nations Championship coverage

But before all that, the Guinness Premiership fixtures kick off with a some mouth-watering clashes to get the season underway.

In the capital, the four London clubs will be vying for early season bragging rights as the fifth London Double Header takes place at Twickenham, with last season's Heineken Cup semi-finalists London Irish facing the reigning Guinness Premiership Champions London Wasps. Fellow Heineken Cup semi-finalists Saracens will play in the other match against last year's sixth placed team, Harlequins.

At the other end of the season, the Guinness Premiership Final is confirmed for 16 May 2009. This will avoid any clash with the date of the opening fixture of the British & Irish Lions Tour to South Africa.

+ Click here for full details of the Premiership fixtures

The Heineken Cup is also set to once again refresh parts other competition cannot reach when action in Europe's premier club competition gets underway later this year.

Sale Sharks were handed arguably the toughest task of all the English clubs in last month's draw, with the talented Clermont Auvergne and Montauban awaiting them in Pool One.

Premiership champions Wasps must also overcome a strong trio if they are to reach the knockout stages, with Leinster, Castres and Edinburgh making up Pool Two.

Leicester were drawn against Perpignan, Welsh entertainers Ospreys and Italian minnows Treviso in Pool Three.

This season's defeated Heineken Cup finalists Toulouse are in Pool Five alongside Challenge Cup winners Bath, Newport Gwent Dragons and Glasgow.

In Pool Six, Gloucester appear to have a strong chance of qualifying from a group which also includes French side Biarritz, cup quarter-finalists Cardiff and Italy's Calvisano.

Harlequins' prospects look slightly less rosy in Pool Four, however, with Stade Francais, Llanelli Scarlets and Ulster awaiting them when the matches get under way in October.

This season's competition will reach a climax at Murryfield on the weekend of 22/23/24 May 2009.

Last month's pool draw was the first to use the new European Cup Rugby rankings system which split the clubs into four tiers based on performances in the competition over the last four seasons.

Here are the pools:

POOL 1: Munster, Sale Sharks, Clermont Auvergne, Montauban

POOL 2: London Wasps, Leinster, Castres Olympique, Edinburgh

POOL 3: Leicester Tigers, Perpignan, Ospreys, Treviso

POOL 4: Stade Français, Llanelli Scarlets, Ulster, Harlequins

POOL 5: Toulouse, Bath, Newport Gwent Dragons, Glasgow Warriors

POOL 6: Biarritz, Gloucester, Cardiff Blues, Calvisano

And here are the dates to pencil in your diary:

ROUND 1 - 10 / 11 / 12 October 2008
ROUND 2 - 17 / 18 / 19 October 2008
ROUND 3 - 5 / 6 / 7 December 2008
ROUND 4 - 12 / 13 / 14 December 2008
ROUND 5 - 16 / 17 / 18 January 2009
ROUND 6 - 23 / 24 / 25 January 2009

QUARTER-FINALS - 10/11/12 April 2009
SEMI-FINALS - 1/2/3 May 2009
FINALS - 22/23/24 May

+ Click here for complete Heineken Cup coverage

European Rugby Cup officials have also confirmed the draw for the composition of the five Pools of four teams each with Newcastle Falcons and Brive going head-to-head for the fourth successive season.

The draw was conducted using the new ERC European Ranking system based on the qualified teams' performances and participation in the Heineken Cup and knock-out stages of the European Challenge Cup over the past four seasons.

The 20 teams who qualified for the 2008 / 2009 competition were graded into four Tiers of five teams each with each of the five Pools having one team from each of the four Tier levels.

Teams from the same country were kept apart in the Pools with the exception of the sixth and seventh ranked teams from France (Toulon and Stade Montois) and the sixth ranked team from England (Bristol) who could be drawn with teams from the same country.

European Challenge Cup Pools 2008 / 2009
POOL 1: London Irish, Connacht Rugby, Dax*/Albi*, Rugby Rovigo
POOL 2: Northampton Saints, Bristol Rugby, Montpellier, Toulon
POOL 3: Bourgoin, Worcester Warriors, Petrarca Rugby, Bucuresti Oaks
POOL 4: Newcastle Falcons, Brive, Overmach Rugby Parma, Cetransa El Salvador
POOL 5: Saracens, Viadana, Bayonne, Stade Montois Rugby
*The participation of Dax*/ Albi* is subject to confirmation from the LNR & FFR.

European Challenge Cup 2008 / 2009 Tiers
Tier 1: Saracens, London Irish, Northampton Saints, Newcastle Falcons, Bourgoin
Tier 2: Worcester Warriors, Brive, Bristol Rugby, Connacht Rugby, Viadana
Tier 3: Montpellier, Overmach Parma, Bayonne, Dax*/Albi*, Petrarca Rugby
Tier 4: Rugby Rovigo, Toulon, Stade Montois Rugby, Bucuresti Oaks, Cetransa El Salvador

EUROPEAN CHALLENGE CUP 2008 / 2009 FIXTURES
Round 1 - 10 / 11 / 12 October, 2008
Round 2 - 17 / 18 / 19 October, 2008
Round 3 - 5 / 6 / 7 December, 2008
Round 4 - 12 / 13 / 14 December, 2008
Round 5 - 17 / 18 / 19 January, 2009
Round 6 - 24 / 25 / 26 January, 2009
Quarter-finals - 10 / 11 / 12 April, 2009
Semi-finals - 1 / 2 / 3 May, 2009
13th European Challenge Cup final - 22 / 23 / 24 May, 2009.

+ Click here for complete European Challenge Cup coverage

This season also sees the return of the EDF Energy Anglo-Welsh Cup with the leading clubs from England and the regional sides from Wales going head to head.

This season's competition will reach a climax at Twickenham on 18 April 2009 but before that there are a host of cross-border clashes to witness.

Round 1 - Weekend of October 4     

Pool A               Gloucester Rugby v London Wasps (October 4, 2.30pm, live on BBC Network)
Pool A               Dragons v Newcastle Falcons
Pool B               Bath Rugby v Leicester Tigers
Pool B               Sale Sharks v Blues
Pool C               Ospreys v Harlequins
Pool C               Worcester Warriors v London Irish
Pool D               Northampton Saints v Bristol Rugby
Pool D               Saracens v Scarlets

Round 2 - Weekend of October 25  

Pool A               Newcastle Falcons v London Wasps
Pool A               Gloucester Rugby v Dragons
Pool B               Blues v Leicester Tigers  (October 25, 2.35pm, live on BBC Network)
Pool B               Sale Sharks v v Bath Rugby
Pool C               Harlequins v London Irish 
Pool C               Ospreys v Worcester Warriors
Pool D               Saracens v Northampton Saints
Pool D               Scarlets v Bristol Rugby
                                  
Round 3 - Weekend of November 1

Pool A               Newcastle Falcons v Gloucester Rugby
Pool A               London Wasps v Dragons
Pool B               Blues v Bath Rugby
Pool B               Leicester Tigers v Sale Sharks
Pool C               London Irish v Ospreys
Pool C               Worcester Warriors v Harlequins
Pool D               Northampton Saints v Scarlets
Pool D               Bristol Rugby v Saracens

+ Click here for complete Anglo-Welsh Cup coverage

And if all that hasn't whetted your appetite there's so much more to look enjoy right here on Scrum over the next 12 months!

There's the 2009 Super 14, Magners League, French Top 14, IRB Sevens, Air New Zealand Cup, Currie Cup and the Rugby World Cup Sevens - stay tuned to Scrum for full coverage!