Ospreys team to face Gloucester

The Ospreys team to face Gloucester at the Liberty Stadium on Friday 9th November, KO 19.45, is as follows:

 

The Ospreys team to face Gloucester at the Liberty Stadium on Friday 9th November, KO 19.45, is as follows:

 

15 Ross Jones

14 Tom Grabham

13 Ben John

12 Jonathan Spratt

11 Will Price

10 Matthew Morgan

9 Rhys Webb

 

1 Marc Thomas

2 Matthew Dwyer

3 Joe Rees

4 Lloyd Peers

5 James King

6 George Stowers

7 Sam Lewis (Capt)

8 Morgan Allen

 

REPLACEMENTS

16 Scott Otten

17 Nicky Smith

18 Nicky Thomas

19 Rhodri Hughes

20 Arthur Ellis

21 Tom Habberfield

22 Sam Davies

23 Nathan Edwards

 

Marc Thomas and Will Price make their first Ospreys start

Scott Otten, Nicky Smith, Nicky Thomas, Rhodri Hughes, Arthur Ellis and Nathan Edwards will all make their Ospreys debuts if they come off the bench

 

Head Coach, Steve Tandy, said:

“This is a really positive time for everybody here. We have young players coming in to the group who really want to take their opportunity to show what they can do and it brings a real freshness around the place that excites everyone including us coaches.

“We’ve really seen the benefits of the LV= Cup as a development competition over the last couple of seasons, with lots of players being introduced to the team in the LV and going on to establish themselves not just with the Ospreys but for people like Tipuric, Beck and Bevington, with Wales as well. It’s a fantastic opportunity while the internationals are away now for the next group of boys to step up and I personally am really looking forward to it.

“Gloucester are maybe more unfamiliar opposition for us, coming from the Premiership, but they are a good team and are well coached by someone we know very well in Nigel Davies. Whatever the team selection, he will have them organised, tough to beat and solid up front as you expect with English clubs, with a bit of flair, and no doubt coming back to this part of the world he’ll be desperate for the win.

“It’s going to be a really good test for this young group, not just in terms of stepping up a level to play, but also, coming to the Liberty in front of a bigger crowd. We want to see how they respond to the different pressures, and I’m sure our supporters are keen to maybe get a first look at some players who will go on and become familiar to them as key Ospreys in coming seasons.”

Forthcoming Fixtures

Sat 17 Nov – 17.00KO – Exeter v Ospreys – LV= Cup

Fri 23 Nov – 19.05KO – Edinburgh v Ospreys – RaboDirect PRO12

Fri 30 Nov – 19.05KO – Ospreys v Cardiff Blues – RaboDirect PRO12

Sat 8 Dec – 14.35KO – Toulouse v Ospreys – Heineken Cup

Sat 15 Dec – 13.35KO – Ospreys v Toulouse – Heineken Cup

Wed 26 Dec – 17.30KO – Ospreys v Scarlets – RaboDirect PRO12