The first ever draw for the European Rugby Champions Cup took place at Stade de la Maladière in Neuchatel, Switzerland today.
The Ospreys were seeded in the third tier for the draw which saw the region paired with old and new foes for the new-look competition which gets underway in October.
Pulled out of the hat in Pool 5, the Ospreys face Northampton Saints, Racing Metro and Benetton Treviso.
It’s the second consecutive year that the Ospreys have been drawn to face the Saints, the two teams having faced off in the Heineken Cup last year with Northampton winning both games.
Despite those wins they failed to progress to the quarter-finals, dropping into the second tier Amlin Cup, a competition they eventually won, beating Bath 30-16 in the final at BT Sport Cardiff Arms Park. The following weekend they completed a memorable double by beating Saracens 24-20 after extra time at Twickenham in the Aviva Premiership Final.
It will be the first time that the Ospreys have ever faced Racing Metro in any form of competition.
The Paris based side boasts a host of famous names, not least former Osprey Mike Phillips and his fellow Welshmen Jamie Roberts, Dan Lydiate and summer signing Luke Charteris. Others in their star studded squad this season were Johnny Sexton, Juan Martin Hernandez and Soane Tonga’uiha.
PRO12 rivals Treviso are the familiar foes who make up the pool, having faced the Ospreys on 14 occasions to date in league and European cup competition. The Ospreys have won 11 of those matches, but on their last two trips to Stadio Comunale di Monigo in the Heineken Cup, they failed to win, with a draw in 2012 followed by a Treviso win the following year.
Admission to all three home games in the ERCC is covered by an Ospreys season membership, with prices starting at just £190 for an adult, which also includes admission to all PRO12 and LV= Cup games.
The Ticket Office is currently for essential maintenance and IT upgrade, but you can still sign up for a season membership.
While the Ticket Office is closed, personal callers to the stadium should instead head to the main reception which is in the West Stand, facing into the car park, where a member of Ticket Office staff will be able to assist with the sale/enquiry.
During this period, the usual online ticketing service is unavailable. However, to avoid any inconvenience we have created a special online form for supporters to complete, registering your interest in purchasing or renewing your membership. This information will then be forwarded directly to Ticket Office staff who will contact you via your preferred method to complete the purchase.
The form can be found at this link:
http://ospreysrugby.com/BuyTickets/RegisterInterest
Alternatively, there is a special temporary hotline number for any telephone enquiries and purchase. For the following 10 days only, all calls should be directed to 01792 616426 between 9am and 5pm, Monday to Friday.
Please note that while the Ticket Office is closed it will not be possible for season members to move seats as access to the ticketing system is limited.
The Ticket Office will reopen as normal at 10am on Monday 16th June.
2014/15 European Rugby Champions Cup
Pool 1: Saracens, Munster Rugby, ASM Clermont Auvergne, Sale Sharks
Pool 2: Leinster Rugby, Castres Olympique, Harlequins, London Wasps
Pool 3: RC Toulon, Leicester Tigers, Ulster Rugby, Scarlets
Pool 4: Glasgow Warriors, Montpellier, Bath Rugby, Toulouse
Pool 5: Northampton Saints, Racing Metro 92, Ospreys, Benetton Treviso
2014/15 European Rugby Challenge Cup
Pool 1: Cardiff Blues, London Irish, Grenoble, FIRA-AER 1
Pool 2: Exeter Chiefs, Bayonne, Connacht Rugby, La Rochelle
Pool 3: Stade Francais Paris, NG Dragons, Newcastle Falcons, FIRA-AER 2
Pool 4: Edinburgh Rugby, Bordeaux-Begles, London Welsh, Lyon
Pool 5: Gloucester Rugby, Brive, Zebre, Oyonnax
Pool stage dates
Round 1: 16/17/18/19 October 2014
Round 2: 23/24/25/26 October 2014
Round 3: 4/5/6/7 December 2014
Round 4: 11/12/13/14 December 2014
Round 5: 15/16/17/18 January 2015
Round 6: 22/23/24/25 January 2015