Ospreys team to face the Scarlets

The Ospreys team to face the Scarlets in the Magners League on Thursday 27th December, at Stradey Park, kick off at 7.35pm, will be as follows: -

15 Lee Byrne
14 Nikki Walker
13 Mark Taylor
12 Andrew Bishop
11 Aled Brew
10 James Hook
9 Mike Phillips

8 Ryan Jones (Capt)
7 Ben Lewis
6 Jonathan Thomas
5 Alun Wyn Jones
4 Ian Gough
3 Adam Jones
2 Richard Hibbard
1 Duncan Jones

Replacements:

16 Huw Bennett
17 Cai Griffiths
18 Lyndon Bateman
19 Tom Smith
20 Justin Marshall
21 Shaun Connor
22 Jonathan Vaughton

Head Coach, Lyn Jones, commented as follows:

"Ryan Jones should make his debut as Skipper against the Scarlets providing he has no adverse reaction following his appearance for Swansea. It will be a massive positive for both the Ospreys and for Wales to have Ryan back on the park and he is keen to make up for lost time."

"We always look forward to the challenge of Stradey Park and by this I mean not only the challenge set by their players, but also the challenge laid down by a passionate and vocal home support. The three games over the Christmas and New Year period will have a massive bearing on whether we will retain our title and it's also worth noting that on the two occasions we have won the Magners League we have been successful at Stradey Park."

"There are many fascinating individual battles within this fixture, with Ryan up against Alix Popham, Stoddart against Byrne, Rees against Hibbard and the half backs will also clearly be out to get one over each other. All of these boys will be looking to give Warren Gatland something to think about when he is considering his Six Nations squad at the end of January. A key man for the Scarlets is clearly Regan King, who is again on top form this season, but we are also expecting a fiery encounter from a Scarlets pack which has won only one of their last six matches."

"We were delighted to go away to Ulster and register a victory last weekend, but we will not get carried away with our successes over the last few months and our players are conscious that improvements are required in our game. We have a good record at Stradey Park, having won fifty per-cent of the matches we have played there and we travel with confidence that I am sure will be further increased by another huge travelling Ospreys support."

Injury and squad availability news

Three players are not available for selection this week:

Gavin Henson (hand) hopes to be available for selection against the Blues

Sonny Parker has undergone a minor knee operation and will be out for around three weeks

Barry Williams will have a hip operation in London on January 7th and he then faces a four-month rehabilitation programme

Christmas and New Year Fixture News

Upcoming fixtures are as follows:

Magners League - Thursday 27th December - Scarlets v Ospreys - Stradey Park - 7.35pm

Magners League - Monday 31st December - Ospreys v Blues - Liberty Stadium - 2.05pm

Magners League - Saturday 5th January - Leinster v Ospreys - Royal Dublin Society - 7.30pm

Please note that all fixtures are subject to change