Tandy names his 23 for the big ERCC game against Racing Metro on Saturday afternoon at the Liberty Stadium.
The Ospreys team to face Racing Metro at the Liberty Stadium on Saturday 6th December 2014, KO 3.15pm, is as follows:
15 Dan Evans
14 Tom Grabham
13 Ashley Beck
12 Josh Matavesi
11 Eli Walker
10 Dan Biggar
9 Rhys Webb
1 Marc Thomas
2 Scott Baldwin
3 Dmitri Arhip
4 Lloyd Peers
5 Alun Wyn Jones (Capt)
6 James King
7 Justin Tipuric
8 Tyler Ardron
REPLACEMENTS
16 Sam Parry
17 Gareth Thomas
18 Daniel Suter
19 Rynier Bernardo
20 Sam Lewis
21 Martin Roberts
22 Sam Davies
23 Hanno Dirksen
Marc Thomas makes his first European Cup start
Sam Parry and Gareth Thomas will make their European Cup debuts if they come off the bench
The following players were unavailable for selection through injury:
Morgan Allen – Ankle
Dan Baker – Shoulder
Joe Bearman - Groin
Ryan Bevington – Groin
Ifereimi Boladau - Knee
Jeff Hassler – Ligaments
Aaron Jarvis – Pectoral muscle
Duncan Jones –Ligaments
Nicky Smith – Pectoral muscle
Jonathan Spratt - Knee
De Kock Steenkamp – Achilles
Head Coach, Steve Tandy, commented:
“This promises to be a great contest. It’s what European Cup rugby is all about, a big French team coming to the Liberty Stadium on a Saturday afternoon. It’s going to be a great occasion and we’ll have to be at our very best if we want to put in the kind of perfor-mance that’ll be needed to win this one.
“The right performance on Saturday can really open this pool up at the halfway stage, but we know it’s a big challenge. Saying that, there’s a great attitude in the group and this week in training has been excellent. The boys coming back from Wales are well aware of what this weekend means to the region and are well up for it, bringing the momentum from last Saturday in Cardiff with them, while the ones involved over the last two weeks in Ire-land have shown that this squad has real backbone and pride. That’s a pretty good mix if you ask me.
“Racing have real strength in depth and whatever team they send out on Saturday at the Liberty we know we’ll be in for tough test. As coaches, we’ve got to make sure the mindset is right so that the team know what is expected, that they are well prepared and focused, and that when they step onto the pitch they are ready to fight for the region and for each other. We’ve talked all season long about pursuing excellence, and it’s on days like this that the one and two per cents can make a big difference.
“We know it’s going to be physical, we know what Racing will bring to the table, and we’ve got to make sure we are up for the challenge. The supporters have a massive part to play as well, we need them to get behind the team and really make a noise. When we talk about one and two per cents, the support they give at key times can make a critical differ-ence so hopefully we’ll hear them on Saturday afternoon to help get the double header off to a flying start before we got to France next week.”
Forthcoming Fixtures
Sat 13 Dec – 5.15pm KO Racing Metro v Ospreys – MM Arena – ERCC
Sat 20 Dec – 5.15pm KO Ospreys v Ulster – Liberty Stadium – PRO12
Sat 27 Dec – 5.15pm KO – Ospreys v Scarlets – Liberty Stadium – PRO12
Sat 3 Jan – 5.05pm KO – Scarlets v Ospreys – Parc y Scarlets – PRO12
Sun 11 Jan – 4.00pm KO – Ospreys v NG Dragons – Liberty Stadium – PRO12