In the following season Nikora competed with Niall O'Connor for the number 10 jersey, as Keatley left Connacht to join Munster. Nikora played in ten 2011–12 Pro12 games, starting eight of these and scoring 75 points. In Europe, the season marked Connacht's first time to play in the Heineken Cup, the highest level of European rugby. Nikora played in three games in the 2011–12 Heineken Cup, starting twice.