With the big Heineken Cup Blackout against Munster now just two days away, some of the Ospreys players have taken time out of preparations for the game to join in the fun.
Skipper Alun Wyn Jones and young flanker Justin Tipuric showed the fans the way by displaying their true colours, painting their faces in the black of the Ospreys ahead of training on Thursday morning.
The region has called on all fans attending the game to help Blackout the Liberty Stadium this Saturday afternoon, and Jones said he is looking forward to it:
“I can’t wait to see the Liberty Stadium blacked out completely on Saturday. It’s a massive game for us and nothing would be better for us than to see the stands packed by fans dressed in black, their faces painted, waving flags and really create a fantastic atmosphere.
“It’s going to be a special occasion, everybody here is really looking forward it. We’ve had a bit of fun with the face paint in training today but being serious about it, you can see the impact it can have on matchday if everyone in the stands joins in.”
Justin Tipuric added:
“We want to make sure the place is blacked our on Saturday and we thought by doing this today we could lead by example. Make sure that you only wear black to the game, it doesn’t matter what as long it’s black. Paint your face, fly your Ospreys flags, just do what you can to turn the place black.”
“There would be no better sight for us as players than to come out of the tunnel and see a wall of black in every stand. It would certainly give us a huge boost and we could feed off that for our biggest game so far this season, in front of our biggest crowd.”
To help build up the atmosphere ahead of kick-off there will be pre-match activity ahead including gymnastic dancers and a performance on the pitch by the Ospreys choir, while fans are also being encouraged to proudly fly the Ospreys flag for the afternoon – and will be led by official Ospreys flag bearers. The OSC will be selling special Ospreys clappers around the ground at just £1 each to really help raise the noise.
Tickets for the game remain available to buy in person at the Liberty Stadium Ticket Office, online at www.ospreysrugby.com, or via the Ticket Hotline on 08700 400 004.