The Ospreys team to play London Wasps on Sunday 6th February 2011 at The Riverside Hardware Brewery Field, kick off at 3.15pm, will be as follows:
15 Tom Prydie
14 Kristian Phillips
13 Tom Isaacs
12 Gareth Owen
11 Hanno Dirksen
10 Dai Flanagan
9 Rhys Webb
1 Cai Griffiths
2 Huw Bennett
3 Craig Cross
4 Ian Gough
5 Ian Evans
6 James King
7 Justin Tipuric (Capt)
8 Tom Smith
Replacements
16 Mefin Davies
17 Duncan Jones
18 Joe Rees
19 Marty Holah
20 Jerry Collins
21 Jamie Nutbrown
22 Dan Biggar
23 Sonny Parker
Tom Isaacs and Craig Cross make their first Ospreys starts
Gareth Owen makes his 50th Ospreys appearance
The following players were not considered because of injury:
Jonathan Spratt – ACL
Ben Lewis – Neck
Conor McInerney – Knee
Andrew Bishop – Ankle
Adam Jones – Elbow
Tommy Bowe – Knee
James Goode - Ankle
17 players were unavailable on international duty with Wales, Scotland, and Wales U20
Ospreys Assistant Coach, Steve Tandy, said:
“It’s going to be a fantastic opportunity for the younger boys. Last time at the Brewery was great, the Leicester game, the support, and hopefully people will come out and support the boys again. There are some Bridgend local boys involved, so it’s all good for the town, and to see those youngsters who’ve come through Bridgend putting on the shirt for the Ospreys and hopefully turning in another cracking performance.
“It’s been a good training week so we’re looking forward to the game. We just need to be physical, to be direct and all know our roles.”
Ospreys Director of Coaching, Scott Johnson, added:
“This period is a really important one for us as a group, and as an organisation. These players, the young kids involved in the LV= Cup group are our future, and it’s important that we get them well drilled in the basics of what it is to be an Osprey, on and off the field, and what is expected of them.
“They are showing good signs of coming together as a team and that is crucial. For us to succeed moving forward, for the Ospreys to even begin to achieve what we want to, then it’s important that we build a team here, one that plays for the shirt and for each other. Everyone has to know their role, what we want from them, and what their teammates want from them. Without that, we can forget success.
“This competition has been a great experience for them, we’ve seen some really good signs, but we need to keep these boys grounded and make sure they understand that they haven’t succeeded yet, they’ve not achieved anything, they are still learning the game and learning what it takes to be a professional rugby player. There’ll be plenty of praise thrown their way, that’s the nature of the game in Wales, but as a coaching team we’ve got to look beyond that and make sure they as developing players do the same. If we can do that, we’ll be heading in the right direction in terms of building an Ospreys team that we can be proud of.”
Forthcoming fixtures
Sun 13 Feb – Ospreys V Ulster – Liberty Stadium – Magners League – 5.10pm
Sat 19 Feb – Benetton Treviso V Ospreys – Stadio Comunale di Monigo – Magners League – 5.30pm