Centre enjoys eye-catching debut

Man of the match Stefan Watermeyer says he 'couldn't ask for a better start' after his try-scoring Ospreys debut at the Riverside Hardware Brewery Field in Bridgend on Friday evening.

The 23-year old centre caught the eye on his first outing in an Ospreys shirt following his move to the region from South African Currie Cup side Blue Bulls last month, and he says that he is delighted with how the game went, both personally and from a team perspective:

"It was a good first outing for me, I couldn’t ask for a better start. I’m very happy. It was very hard, against good opposition, but I think we outplayed them. We did what we had to do, and did it very well.

"It’s quite a heavy field, but it was a lot of fun. The crowd, the atmosphere, was brilliant, I really enjoyed the experience, especially with the win at the end. We couldn’t really ask for more other than maybe a few more points on the night."

Watermeyer’s first try for the region proved crucial to the outcome of the game, giving his team enough breathing space to see them home. After his eye catching run to the line, he revealed his relief at scoring:

"The ball just came my way at the right time, I was very happy with it. I just thought ‘if they catch me everybody is going to be mad with me so I can’t let them catch me’. It was good to get over for my first try for the team."

Previously a squad member at Super Rugby outfit The Bulls, Watermeyer is currently contracted only until the end of the season, but he made it clear he wants to stay in Ospreylia:

"I’m enjoying every minute of it" he said.

"It’s quite an adventure. I’m still getting to know the new country and everything. It was definitely a step up tonight from where I’ve been playing in the Premiership for Swansea over the last month. Everything feels more professional, and I think it will be the same if I play PRO12, it’ll be another step up.

"I’d like to get into the group playing in the PRO12. I’ve got a lot of hard work ahead of me but I think in the long run, if Beck is going to be in the Welsh squad then we’ll need another 12 and that opens up a gap for a guy like me.

"I think it’s a bit soon to talk about the future, it’s only one game in for me. I just want to play some nice rugby and hopefully I can stay because I like it here."