"Passionate Ospreylian" crowd praised by bosses after Munster win

While the media focus was firmly on the Wales v Australia test match at the Millennium Stadium earlier in the day, and Shane Williams' much talked about final international appearance, the Ospreys went into PRO12 battle against a Munster team boasting all their big names, and the spirit and determination displayed on the pitch by the players was matched in the stands as the crowd got behind the team from start to finish.

Andrew Hore, Chief Operations Officer at the Ospreys, said:

"The supporters were fantastic on Saturday evening, they really were. They really got behind the team and made a huge difference. All the talk in the week had been about the international and Shane's farewell, and it would have been easy for them to look at that game up the road and ignore that we were playing after it.

"These fans are passionate Ospreylians though and they wanted to be there to get behind their region when our backs were against the wall against a quality team and they really gave us first class support.

"It means so much to the team, to know that they've got such passionate fans who will get behind them when they need it. It may not have been the biggest crowd, but they were certainly, loud, proud and passionate. To hear them in those last 10 minutes, urging the team on when Munster were on our line was phenomenal. You'd have thought there were three or four times as many in the ground and it really lifted the team. They could see the desire and the passion in the team and they fed off it, it was clear that the players and the fans all believed in the cause and it was fantastic.

"We've got some big games coming up, Saracens home and away, the Scarlets away and then the Blues home, and hopefully we'll be able to give them something to cheer in those games as well."

Director of Coaching, Scott Johnson, said:

"It was a fantastic win, one that all Ospreylians can be proud of. The boys showed everything that we've been talking about in terms of character and spirit, and the crowd really identified with that. The noise they made was great, they certainly got behind the team and helped the players when they had to dig in, particularly at the end.

"We aren't the finished article and it wasn't the perfect performance, but what the fans could see was a team playing for each other, playing for the shirt, and that meant something to them. We can all be proud of what happened on Saturday night."