The Ospreys team to face the Scarlets at Parc y Scarlets on Saturday 3rd January 2015, KO 5.05pm (UK), is as follows:
15 Dan Evans
14 Hanno Dirksen
13 Ashley Beck
12 Josh Matavesi
11 Aisea Natoga
10 Dan Biggar
9 Rhys Webb
1 Marc Thomas
2 Scott Baldwin
3 Dmitri Arhip
4 James King
5 Alun Wyn Jones (Capt)
6 Dan Lydiate
7 Justin Tipuric
8 Tyler Ardron
REPLACEMENTS
16 Sam Parry
17 Duncan Jones
18 Aaron Jarvis
19 Rynier Bernardo
20 Sam Lewis
21 Martin Roberts
22 Sam Davies
23 Tom Grabham
James King makes his 100th appearance for the Ospreys
The following players were unavailable for selection through injury:
Dan Baker – Shoulder
Joe Bearman - Groin
Ryan Bevington – Groin
Andrew Bishop - Neck
Jeff Hassler – Ligaments
Lloyd Peers - Ligaments
Nicky Smith – Pectoral muscle
Jonathan Spratt - Knee
De Kock Steenkamp – Achilles
Eli Walker -Hamstring
Head Coach, Steve Tandy, commented:
“It was pretty much mixed emotions last weekend. Obviously we were pleased to win the big derby match in front of our own fans at the Liberty, and to end the year at the top of the table, but there was a huge feeling of disappointment at the performance. We didn’t do ourselves justice, we didn’t perform at the level we expect of an Ospreys team, and we almost paid the price for it. The dressing room was fairly downbeat after the game as there was a realisation that we didn’t reach the desired standard.
“The focus this week in training has been about getting back to basics and doing the small things correctly. We know that it’s going to be tough down there on Saturday, there’ll be a big crowd and Scarlets tails will be up given our poor performance in the second half.
“It’s important that we prepare the right way for this game and treat it exactly like we would any other fixture, ignoring the hype and everything that goes with a derby match. We have worked hard to put ourselves in the position we are in the PRO12 table and it’s important that we keep striving for excellence, pushing ourselves to be better each week so that the hard work doesn’t go to waste.”
Forthcoming Fixtures
Sun 11 Jan – 4.00pm KO – Ospreys v NG Dragons – Liberty Stadium – PRO12
Sun 18 Jan – 5.30pm KO – Ospreys v Northampon Saints – ERCC
Sat 24 Jan – 4.15pm KO – Benetton Treviso v Ospreys ERCC