Bowe pulls the strings

AN Irishman could hold the key to wresting the Magners League trophy across the Irish Sea to Wales after tonight’s battle at the RDS.

Tommy Bowe is sure to be one of the key figures as the amalgam of great Welsh clubs Neath and Swansea, now known as the Ospreys, seek to emulate Cardiff’s recent heroic feat of securing the Amlin European trophy by beating cash-rich Toulon.

Ospreys coach Sean Holley admitted: “Tommy has been a great signing for us. He’s really brought something to us for the last couple of seasons and clearly he’s a try scoring threat Leinster must curb. But he’s more than that for us, he’s a good character, a real team player and he can be a very versatile player.

“He has adapted to our defensive style very well. We’re really pleased with his form, we’re delighted he’s come through a real hard season both domestically and internationally, and that he is in good shape to play in such a prestigious game for us.

“He has played predominantly at 14, but when we signed Tommy he was keen to explore a second position, looking to adapt his game a little bit that way, and we have afforded him that opportunity — most notably at 13.

“He has played there in Europe and in the latter stages of games, but he’s also covered 15 for us as well so he has added a lot of strings to his bow — excuse the pun.”

Meanwhile, Ospreys captain Ryan Jones has thrown down a challenge to Leinster supporters as he promised his side would not bow to possible verbal intimidation.

“They’re a great crowd, very vociferous from my experience, but we’re prepared for anything that they throw at us,’’ Jones said. “We have had a relaxed enough week, but we realise all of this will change once we run onto the pitch. We have to be up for it mentally and physically and ready to cope with everything associated with the game, including the big crowd.

“We haven’t had much joy in the RDS over the last couple of seasons, but I don’t think that really has any bearing on this game. The fans are very vocal and they appreciate their rugby. We obviously have to give ourselves an opportunity to settle early on. Once we do that, I would be fairly confident of producing a good performance.

“In the modern game, the professional environment, we have a lot of guys with huge experience of playing in all types of conditions, home and away, and these guys know how to deal with things like that. It’s part and parcel of professional sport,” he said.