Buoyed by an eight-point haul over the festive period, Leinster will go in search of their first win in five trips to Wales when they tackle the equally in-form Ospreys in Swansea tonight.
GUINNESS PRO12: Friday, January 8
OSPREYS (7th) v LEINSTER (2nd), Liberty Stadium, 7.45pm (live Sky Sports 1 HD/BBC 2 Wales)
Team News: Leinster head coach Leo Cullen has made six changes to the team that beat Connacht last time out at the RDS, with three in the pack and a further three in the backs.
Rob Kearney is again selected at full-back with brother Dave continuing on the left wing and club captain Isa Nacewa coming in on the right.
There is a positional switch at centre with Ben Te’o moving to the outside berth and Luke Fitzgerald coming into the starting line-up to wear the number 12 jersey.
Luke McGrath has recovered from the foot infection that kept him out of last week’s starting line-up. He will be joined at half-back by Jonathan Sexton who has shaken off a knee injury that forced him to leave the pitch early last week.
Up front, Jack McGrath and Richardt Strauss are joined in the front row by young tighthead prop Tadhg Furlong. Devin Toner, who is set for his 175th Leinster cap, and Mike McCarthy pair up once more in the second row.
In the back row, last week’s captain Rhys Ruddock is joined by fellow Ireland internationals Sean O’Brien and Jamie Heaslip.
On the bench Noel Reid is back involved in a matchday squad for the first time since recovering from an ankle injury. He is in line to win his 50th cap for Leinster.
Meanwhile, Dan Biggar and Brendon Leonard return in an all-international half-back pairing as the Ospreys management make eight changes to the side that overcame the Newport Gwent Dragons 12-7 on New Year’s Day.
Sam Davies and Tom Habberfield make way for the returning duo, while centres Jonathan Spratt and Owen Watkin are the other back-line alterations.
Wales prop Paul James, who captains the side, takes over from Nicky Smith at loosehead, with lock Rory Thornton and flankers James King and Sam Underhill also added to the line-up.
The Ospreys will be able to call on some potential game changers as replacements, with the likes of Alun Wyn Jones, Justin Tipuric and Eli Walker held in reserve.
OSPREYS: Dan Evans; Jeff Hassler, Jonathan Spratt, Owen Watkin, Hanno Dirksen; Dan Biggar, Brendon Leonard; Paul James (capt), Scott Baldwin, Aaron Jarvis, Lloyd Ashley, Rory Thornton, James King, Sam Underhill, Dan Baker.
Replacements: Scott Otten, Nicky Smith, Ma’afu Fia, Alun Wyn Jones, Justin Tipuric, Tom Habberfield, Sam Davies, Eli Walker.
LEINSTER: Rob Kearney; Isa Nacewa (capt), Ben Te’o, Luke Fitzgerald, Dave Kearney; Jonathan Sexton, Luke McGrath; Jack McGrath, Richardt Strauss, Tadhg Furlong, Devin Toner, Mike McCarthy, Rhys Ruddock, Sean O’Brien, Jamie Heaslip.
Replacements: Sean Cronin, Peter Dooley, Martin Moore, Tom Denton, Dominic Ryan, Eoin Reddan, Ian Madigan, Noel Reid.
Referee: David Wilkinson (Ireland)
Assistant Referees: Ben Whitehouse, Simon Rees (both Wales)
Television Match Official: Jon Mason (Wales)
Match Odds (Paddy Power): Ospreys to win: 15/8; Draw: 14/1; Leinster to win: 4/9
Pre-Match Quotes: Girvan Dempsey (Leinster) – “I think if you look at the Ospreys over the last five weeks they’ve been very impressive. They’re really starting to hit a rich vein of form. I know they’re mid-table but they’re moving up.
“They’ve had two very big wins over the last couple of weekends; going over to the Scarlets and they come away with a one-point victory (27-26), and last weekend there against the Dragons (12-7).
“You look at them at the start of the season and they were possibly similar to ourselves. They found it hard integrating those guys back in but they’ve shown that, if you look at their performances in Europe home and away to Bordeaux, they’re still very much in Europe. They’re fighting on two fronts over the next two weeks.
“It’s going to be a big task (against the Ospreys) and we know it is. What we’re trying to do is build on the performance from Munster into Connacht, and now we know if we want to be in the top four or even the top two come the end of the season these are the games we have to be winning.
“You look at the Ospreys and they’re always very physical. They’re very solid in defence, they put a lot of pressure on your attack so you’ve got to be accurate and you’ve to be creative in how you break them down.
“When they have the ball they’re pretty miserly – they hold onto it for long periods of time and they can punish you. They’ve got a lot of strength in the squad and some quite big, physical players. We’ve got to be on top form to win over there.”
Steve Tandy (Ospreys) – “We can look back at the Christmas period and be relatively pleased with the outcome from two difficult matches, even if we feel that we still have some way to go in terms of performance if we are going to achieve what we want to this season.
“It doesn’t get any easier as we’re up against the form team in the PRO12 on Friday night. Leinster had to deal with similar issues to ourselves at the start of the season due to their over-contribution to the Rugby World Cup but have more than made up for that as they’ve played their way towards the top of the table.
“We know that we have to continue striving for excellence as a team, working hard as a collective, if we’re going to keep heading in the right direction ourselves, starting on Friday.
“Clearly the win over the Dragons last weekend came at a cost with some senior players ruled out of action but we can’t look to hide behind that as an excuse. Although it’s a young squad involved on Friday, there’s a hardcore of international experience still available.
“We’ve got some exciting up and coming talent mixed in who have a chance to really make a name for themselves, starting this weekend. They’ve got to thrive on the opportunity and make the most of it.”
Top Scorers – 2015/16 GUINNESS PRO12: Ospreys – Points: Sam Davies 80; Tries: Justin Tipuric, Eli Walker 4 each; Leinster – Points: Isa Nacewa 49; Tries: Isa Nacewa 5
RECENT LEAGUE MEETINGS:
Sunday, November 4, 2012 – Ospreys 19 Leinster 10, Liberty Stadium
Friday, May 3, 2013 – Leinster 37 Ospreys 19, the RDS
Saturday, September 14, 2013 – Leinster 29 Ospreys 29, the RDS
Friday, April 11, 2014 – Ospreys 29 Leinster 19, Liberty Stadium
Saturday, November 29, 2014 – Leinster 18 Ospreys 12, the RDS
Friday, February 27, 2015 – Ospreys 9 Leinster 9, Liberty Stadium
MATCH FACTS:
– The Ospreys achieved a fifth successive GUINNESS PRO12 victory at home to the Newport Gwent Dragons on New Year’s Day
– The Welshmen have not been beaten at the Liberty Stadium since Connacht were the visitors in October
– Leinster have won their last six PRO12 encounters since their 25-14 defeat to the Scarlets in Llanelli in round
4
– The Leinstermen are winless on their last four visits to Wales since beating Cardiff Blues at BT Sport Cardiff Arms Park on January 10, 2015
– The Ospreys have won just one of their last seven fixtures against Leinster in all competitions: 25-19 at the Liberty Stadium in the PRO12 in April 2014, however Leinster have not been triumphant at the venue in the PRO12 since September 2009
This website uses cookies.
Read More