Edinburgh mix it up for Ospreys
Edinburgh coach Rob Moffat has made five changes to his starting line-up for the Magners League leaders’ trip to the Liberty Stadium to face Ospreys on Sunday, with new signing Steve Jones selected to start at fullback.
Following last Saturday’s narrow home loss to European champions Leinster, Edinburgh are still top of the table and have scored 30 more points than any other team in the competition.
Now Moffat has decided to inject some fresh faces into his line-up with Chris Paterson, Ben Cairns, Kyle Traynor, Ross Ford and Roddy Grant replaced by Jones, John Houston, Allan Jacobsen, Andrew Kelly and Scott Newlands.
The Edinburgh head coach stresses the reasoning behind the changes was because of a need to manage the overall fitness level of the squad rather than down to individual performances.
“There have been some tough selection decisions to make,” Moffat said. “Make no mistake about it the side chosen is not an experimental team.
“We have selected the team we believe can go to the Ospreys and win while also managing the wellbeing of the whole squad.”
Moffat insists that squad rotation is essential for any side to be successful throughout the gruelling season on both domestic and European fronts.
Jones, 26, joined from Newcastle Falcons in May and the Scotland ‘A’ international says he is really looking forward to making his full debut.
“I’m really pleased to have been given an opportunity,” Jones said, “I’ve been waiting for an opening and now I’m determined to make the most of it.”
Moffat believes his players have learned a lot from the defeat by Leinster and says there is plenty of confidence in the squad heading into Sunday’s contest.
“There was disappointment after the Leinster result, but we have moved on and it is an exciting challenge to face Ospreys down in Swansea,” he said.
“They are a quality side with some excellent individuals, but we have belief in our squad and we certainly don’t fear the task ahead.”
On the injury front, wing Simon Webster is still receiving treatment for an Achilles injury he suffered during pre-season.
Captain Simon Cross is still ruled out with a knee injury and joins long term absentees, Ross Rennie (knee) and David Callam (hip) in the treatment room.
Meanwhile, both fullback Jim Thompson and Scotland lock Jim Hamilton (both knee) are back doing light training and closer to returning to first team availability.
Naming his side Ospreys Coach Jonathan Humphreys said: “Edinburgh are a side who like to play rugby so we’re all looking forward to what should be a good test and an entertaining game for the fans. Clearly they are no mugs, they’ve improved year on year in recent seasons, finished in second place last season and have got off to a bit of a flier this time around.
“As a coaching team, I have to say that we were a lot happier with what we saw from the players in Glasgow last week, it was good to see a bit more of what we’ve been trying to do coming through, it’s pleasing to see it making a difference. The application was better than it’s been and the spirit and character of the squad was outstanding, as it has been all along.
“There’s still a lot more to come from us though, we know that as coaches and the players are well aware of it. Just as we weren’t going to panic after losing a couple of games, we certainly aren’t going to get carried away with one. We’re expecting a real test so we need to step up another level again on Sunday, and the focus this week has been on making sure we get the little things right that will make a huge difference.”
Teams:
The Ospreys: 15 Lee Byrne, 14 Shane Williams, 13 Tommy Bowe, 12 James Hook, 11 Nikki Walker, 10 Dan Biggar, 9 Mike Phillips, 8 Ryan Jones (captain), 7 Marty Holah, 6 Tom Smith, 5 Jonathan Thomas, 4 Alun-wyn Jones, 3 Cai Griffiths, 2 Richard Hibbard, 1 Duncan Jones
Replacements: 16 Huw Bennett, 17 Craig Mitchell, 18 Ian Evans, 19 Jerry Collins, 20 Jamie Nutbrown, 21 Gareth Owen, 22 Andrew Bishop
Edinburgh: 15 Steve Jones, 14 Mark Robertson, 13 Nick De Luca, 12 John Houston, 11 Tim Visser, 10 Phil Godman, 9 Mike Blair (captain) 8 Allister Hogg7 Alan MacDonald6 Scott Newlands5 Scott MacLeod4 Craig Hamilton3 Geoff Cross2 Andrew Kelly1 Allan Jacobsen
Replacements: 16 Ross Ford, 17 Ryan Grant, 18 Steven Turnbull, 19 Roddy Grant, 20 Greig Laidlaw, 21 David Blair, 22 Ben Cairns.
Date: Sunday, 4 October
Venue: Liberty Stadium, Swansea
Time: 16.00 (17.00 GMT)
Referee: John Lacey (Ireland)
Assistant referees: Leighton Hodges (Wales), Huw Griffiths (Wales)
TMO: Nigel Whitehouse (Wales)
