The Ospreys team to play Toulouse at the Liberty Stadium on Saturday 15th December, KO 13.35 is as follows:
15 Richard Fussell
14 Ross Jones
13 Andrew Bishop
12 Ashley Beck
11 Eli Walker
10 Dan Biggar
9 Kahn Fotuali’i (Capt)
1 Ryan Bevington
2 Richard Hibbard
3 Campbell Johnstone
4 Ian Gough
5 James King
6 Ryan Jones
7 Justin Tipuric
8 Joe Bearman
REPLACEMENTS
16 Scott Baldwin
17 Duncan Jones
18 Adam Jones
19 Lloyd Peers
20 George Stowers
21 Rhys Webb
22 Matthew Morgan
23 Tom Isaacs
The following players were not considered because of injury:
Alun Wyn Jones – Shoulder
Hanno Dirksen – Knee
Joe Rees – Neck
Jonathan Thomas - Groin
Tom Smith – Groin
Aaron Jarvis – Knee
Owen Williams - Hamstring
Ian Evans – Knee
Tom Grabham - Hip
Backs Coach, Gruff Rees, said:
“With our next two Heineken Cup fixtures both at home here at the Liberty, it gives us a great opportunity to really put ourselves back in the mix. There’s everything still to play for in the pool, and we know that if we can get the performance levels right in these games against Toulouse and then Leicester next month, then anything can happen and we could be going into the final round of fixtures with qualification hopes very much still alive.
“Last weekend we saw a glimpse of the Ospreys future with so many youngsters involved out in France, and we can be really proud of the true Ospreys spirit that they displayed in the toughest of circumstances. However, pride on its own isn’t enough and we all know that we need to back it up this week in front of our own supporters.
“We saw last week what a difference the crowd can make and we are hoping for something similar on Saturday. Our fans were brilliant in Toulouse, making themselves heard amongst a very vocal home crowd who really backed their team when they needed them. Now we are back at the Liberty we’ll want the same from our fans, who can play their part. Obviously we need to play the game in the right areas, manage territory and possession, and give them something to get excited about, but it’s a team effort and if they are supporting the cause the team can feed off them.
“It’s going to be a massive occasion and we want to show what the Ospreys are all about, on and off the field.”
Forthcoming Fixtures
Wed 26 Dec – 17.30KO – Ospreys v Scarlets – RaboDirect PRO12
Mon 31 Dec – 16.15KO – Newport Gwent Dragons v Ospreys – RaboDirect PRO12
Fri 4 Jan – 19.05KO – Ospreys v Zebre – RaboDirect PRO12