Ospreys Head Coach Steve Tandy has named his team to face French giants Clermont Auvergne at Issoir on Friday night (KO 8.00pm local time).
There’s a combination of youth and experience in the selection, with the players who toured Australia with Wales in June sitting the match out on the sidelines.
The team will be led by Jonathan Thomas, who wears the number eight shirt, while Ian Gough, Kahn Fotuali’i and Richard Fussell add their considerable experience to a starting XV that also includes the young pairing of Tom Grabham and Ross Jones on the wing and Sam Williams at lock.
Speaking ahead of Friday’s game, Tandy said:
“This is a big test for this group of players. Clermont have a very strong squad and are ahead of us in term of preparation for the new season so we know we’re up against it but as a coaching group it’s going to be interesting for us to assess how they react to the challenge.
“We’ve got a good mix in the team, which makes for an exciting selection. There are older heads who can provide the know-how and guidance to some young players who are keen to impress, and we’re looking forward to it.
“It’s a big step-up in our preparations for the new season, with the home game against Bath (Saturday 18thAugust, KO 3.00pm) coming a week later, and it’s important that as a group and as individuals we stand up and show what we are about. We’ve got two tough tests against two very different kinds of teams that will help us to ensure we are ready for the start of the season.”
OSPREYS TEAM TO FACE CLERMONT AUVERGNE
15 Richard Fussell
14 Tom Grabham
13 Tom Isaacs
12 Jonathan Spratt
11 Ross Jones
10 Matthew Morgan
9 Kahn Fotuali’i
1 Ryan Bevington
2 Scott Baldwin
3 Joe Rees
4 Ian Gough
5 Sam Williams
6 James King
7 Sam Lewis
8 Jonathan Thomas (Capt)
REPLACEMENTS
16 Scott Otten
17 Duncan Jones
18 Aaron Jarvis
19 Lloyd Peers
20 George Stowers
21 Morgan Allen
22 Tom Habberfield
23 Dan Biggar
24 Hanno Dirksen
25 Nathan Edwards
26 Nicky Thomas