Bradley hoping in-form Connacht can clip Ospreys’ wings

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By Linley MacKenzie

MICHAEL BRADLEY will hope his Connacht side can continue their successful European Amlin Challenge Cup form when they return to Magners League action against the Ospreys at Liberty Stadium tomorrow.

The province recorded six wins from their six pool matches and Bradley is desperate for more of the same in this competition. The Connacht coach has named a strong side for the trip to Wales with Gavin Duffy at full-back and Troy Nathan on the wing. Scrum-half Frank Murphy has recovered from a calf injury to partner Ian Keatley at half-back, while up front, Brett Wilkinson, Irish squad member Sean Cronin, and Robbie Morris form the front row.

Michael Swift is rewarded for his battling performances in Europe, continuing his partnership with Bernie Upton in the second row, while John Muldoon captains the side from the blindside, alongside Ray Ofisa and number eight George Na’aupo.

Although Jerry Collins is named on the Ospreys’ bench, fellow Kiwis Marty Holah and Filo Tiatia are in the back row, with Jamie Nutbrown at scrum half, in addition to Scotland’s Nikki Walker, and Ian Evans, Richard Hibbard, and Sonny Parker. Scrum-half Mike Phillips is named on the bench following his recovery from cruciate and medial damage sustained during the Heineken Cup four months ago, while director of coaching Scott Johnson welcomes the return of Dan Biggar, Ian Gough and Tom Prydie from the Welsh squad.

Johnson is wary of the visitors’ threat. He explained: “They are brave, will not go away and they’ll be competitive at all levels. They are vastly underrated because they don’t have the big names, but there’s much to admire about them and they will push us all the way. We know what to expect, and we know that we have to prepare for this in the right way or we will find out for ourselves exactly how capable Connacht are of giving anyone a bloody nose.”

CONNACHT: G Duffy, T Nathan, N Ta’auso, K Matthews, F Carr, I Keatley, F Murphy, B Wilkinson, S Cronin, R Morris, M Swift, B Upton, J Muldoon (cpt), R Ofisa, G Naoupu.

Replacements, A Flavin, J Hagan, J O’Connor, M McCarthy, C O’Loughlin, A Wynne, L Bibo.

OSPREYS: G Owen, H Vaughton, S Parker, A Beck, N Walker, D Biggar, J Nutbrown, T Bevington, R Hibbard, C Mitchell, I Gough (cpt), I Evans, T Smith, M Holah, F Tiatia.

Replacements, E Shervington, C Griffiths, A Lloyd, J Collins, M Phillips, B Davies, T Prydie.