Saturday, December 05, 2009
PLAYERS of the calibre and reputation of Adam Jones, Ian Gough, Ryan Jones, Shane Williams, Mike Phillips and Lee Byrne are among a long list of notable absentees from the Ospreys team to face Munster in the Magners League at Swansea’s Liberty Stadium this evening.
All six are injured as Gavin Henson remains in self-imposed exile while James Hook has been included in the replacements.
The visitors are resting David Wallace and Jerry Flannery and will be without the injured Denis Leamy.
James Coughlan, who captained Munster A in their two recent British & Irish Cup victories, takes over at number eight and Denis Fogarty at hooker. Up front, South African newcomer Wian du Preez makes his first appearance hoping to stake a claim for the loose head position currently vacated by the indisposed Marcus Horan. In the back division, Doug Howlett is back for the first time since injuring a hamstring against Benetton Treviso in October but Ian Dowling has to be satisfied with a place on the bench with Keith Earls remaining in his Irish team place on the left wing.
The Ospreys include a number of familiar names, especially those of in-form Ireland wing Tommy Bowe; Duncan Jones, Alun-wyn Jones, Jonathan Thomas, Filo Tiatia, Marty Holah and former All Black Jerry Collins who captains the side tonight but they are still without a huge number of key players.
Furthermore, they have won only once in their last six matches and just one of their last five games against Irish opposition. They beat Connacht at the start of this Magners League campaign. They came out the wrong end of the result on Munster’s last visit to the Liberty Stadium and will need no reminding of the 43-6 Heineken Cup hiding they shipped at Thomond Park last April.
On the plus side, they have been doing nicely in the Heineken Cup and even though seventh in the Magners League table and two places behind Munster, remain in the running for a top four finish and a spot in the play-offs.
Tonight’s game will be all the more interesting because of the out-half duel between Dan Biggar, a youngster challenging for recognition with Wales, and Ronan O’Gara, who begins his bid to regain his Irish team place.
Biggar was criticised by Welsh coach Warren Gatland after a recent modest performance against Samoa but remains a number ten of considerable potential and is relishing the challenge posed by O’Gara.
"Ronan is a fantastic player and organiser of a game but he has had a tough month," he says. "He has lost his place in the Ireland side and I’m sure he will be hungry to prove a point. He is up there with the best. We’re both loud on the pitch but I will just focus on talking to my team."
The background behind that comment dates all the way back to the meeting of the sides at Musgrave Park in 2004. The Ospreys turned up with a teenage out-half called Matthew Jones and as the sides took the field, O’Gara is alleged to have asked: "Who are you? The U14s don’t play until tomorrow."
Coach Sean Holley recalled the incident last night although without an apparent sense of grievance: "That’s the sort of tactic an experienced player can use. Ronan has been there and done it. But Dan won’t be overawed as he gets a lot of that kind of thing with us. He’s a fiery character and I’m sure he will rise to the challenge."
In fairness, Holley is also an admirer of O’Gara and is expecting a backlash from the experienced Munster playmaker .
"I’d expect nothing less than a typical, consistent O’Gara performance," he commented.
"He kicks well, leads the team, generates momentum with his forwards, has a good passing game and can come up with that one break which nobody is expecting. His strength is in putting Munster and Ireland into positions".
This is an away fixture that Munster will be targeting for at least a four-point gain. As always, though, caution rules supreme within the camp with coach Tony McGahan reflecting on several performances that didn’t at all measure up to expectations.
"I wouldn’t really consider any part of our game so far this season to be at any level of acceptance," he emphasised. "We were happy with several parts of games but only the Ulster match from an intensity, execution and work rate point of view was where we needed to be. It’s the same at this stage every year. If you don’t perform, you’re out of the competitions. This is the moving part of the season and we can’t afford any slip-ups."
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