Ospreys v Borderererers Friday 15th September KO 7.10pm

Ospreys v Borderererers Friday 15th September KO 7.10pm

Ospreys v Bordererererers

Well, the Sprays have been, to put it politely, utter shite since their opening game of the season against Edinburgh. The pretty boys have failed to shine (hair gel excepted) and none of the new faces have gelled (insert hair pun here). That said, they have a great squad on paper and I really can’t believe that Sporting Odds are only giving them a –6 cap. They could quite easily put a bucketload on the Bordererereres tonight and they owe it to themselves, the management and more importantly the fans. There are no prima donnas on the team tonight – I fully expect a much better performance

Preview

Border Reivers' head coach Steve Bates has made only two changes to the team that started last Saturday's game against Munster for the Magners League match against the Ospreys on Friday.

Fullback Calum MacRae misses his first competitive appearance in 16 games due to a thigh strain which he suffered during the narrow 9-8 defeat.
Steve Jones fills the full-back berth, and Gregor Townsend returns to the starting line-up after being selected on the bench last week due to a stomach bug.
"We really improved our performance against Munster, we really could have won that game, but our focus all week has been entirely on tomorrow's game against The Ospreys which is going to be another great opportunity to develop our team play," said Bates.
As expected, the Ospreys have changed almost their entire team for the trip, and are still awaiting tests to find out which of the battered troops are ready to take a place on the bench.
Shaun Connor and James Hook line up at 10 and 12 respectively, with Gavin Henson almost certain to sit out the game completely.
"We were pleased with what was a much improved team performance on Wednesday night, but the players are pretty battered and bruised after a physical encounter," said assistant coach Sean Holley.
"Needless to say we have a strong squad this year and we are looking forward to seeing a number of different combinations on show against the Borders.

"The Borders are continuing to evolve into a threatening team and will be looking for their first win of the season. "Our players will need to perform to the best of their ability to gain any advantage over them. "Although it has physically been a difficult week the mood in our camp remains excellent. There is a strong work ethic amongst the boys and a serious intent to perform in this match."

Form:

The Ospreys won on Wednesday evening against the Blues, and have won their last five matches they have played against Scottish opposition. Border Reivers have won just once in their last nine outings: 43-5 at home to Newport Gwent Dragons on 26 May, whilst the Reivers have not won on the road since a 20-8 victory at Glasgow on 3 March. Border Reivers have never won a match in Wales in 17 previous trips in all competitions. The Ospreys have won four of the six previous meetings they have had with the Reivers, although both encounters last season were won by the home side on the day.

Ospreys: 15 Stefan Terblanche, 14 Richard Mustoe, 13 Tal Selley, 12 James Hook, 11 Jonny Vaughton, 10 Shaun Connor, 9 Martin Roberts, 8 Andy Lloyd, 7 Steve Tandy, 6 Lee Beach, 5 Lyndon Bateman, 4 Alun Wyn Jones, 3 Andrew Millward, 2 Richard Hibbard, 1 Paul James (c), Replacements: 16 Barry Williams, 17 Cai Griffiths, 18 Mike Powell. The rest of the replacements bench will be finalised just ahead of the match

Border Reivers: 15 Steve Jones, 14 Garry Law, 13 Nick De Luca, 12 Ben MacDougall, 11 Mark Robertson, 10 Gregor Townsend, 9 Chris Cusiter (c), 8 Ross Beattie, 7 Scott Gray, 6 Kelly Brown, 5 Craig Hamilton, 4 Opeta Palepoi, 3 Bruce Douglas, 2 Ross Ford, 1 Gavin Kerr.Replacements: 16 Steve Scott, 17 Ed Kalman, 18 Stuart Grimes, 19 Andy Miller, 20 Brendan McKerchar, 21 Simon Danielli, 22 Dougie Flockhart.

Date: Friday, September 15Kick-off: 19:10 (18:10 GMT)Venue: Liberty StadiumReferee: David Keane (Ireland)Touch judges: David Bodilly, Neil Howells

Recommendation: 10 Pts Ospreys -6 at Sporting odds.com