Ospreys (rugby union)

The Ospreys (Welsh: Y Gweilch), formerly the Neath-Swansea Ospreys[1][2] is one of the four professional rugby union teams from Wales. They compete in the Pro14 and the European Rugby Champions Cup. The team formed as a result of Neath RFC and Swansea RFC combining to create a new merged entity, as part of the new regional structure of Welsh rugby, that began in 2003. They are also affiliated with a number of local semi-professional and amateur clubs, including Welsh Premier Division sides Aberavon RFC, Bridgend Ravens, and original founding clubs Neath and Swansea. The regional area represented by the team has widely become known for rugby purposes as 'Ospreylia'.[3]

Ospreys
UnionWelsh Rugby Union
Founded2003 (2003)
LocationSwansea, Wales
Ground(s)Liberty Stadium (Capacity: 20,827)
ChairmanRob Davies
Coach(es)Toby Booth
Captain(s)Justin Tipuric
Most capsAlun Wyn Jones (244)
Top scorerDan Biggar (2,203)
Most triesShane Williams (57)
League(s)Pro14, Conference A
2019–207th
1st kit
2nd kit
Official website
www.ospreysrugby.com

Their main home ground is the Liberty Stadium, Swansea, although some smaller profile games have been played at the Brewery Field, Bridgend. Ospreys currently play in a black home strip, while the away strip is white and orange. The Ospreys logo consists of an image of an Osprey mask.

The Ospreys are the most successful Welsh team in the history of the Celtic League or Pro12 tournament, having won the competition four times. They also became the first and only Welsh regional team to beat a major touring side, defeating Australia 24–16 in 2006.[4]

History

Cardiff Blues
Cardiff
Llanelli Scarlets
Llanelli
The Ospreys
Swansea
Neath
Newport Gwent Dragons
Newport
The 4 Welsh Rugby Union Regions of Wales

Infancy

On 24 July 2003 it was announced that the new team jointly representing Neath RFC and Swansea RFC would be known as the Neath-Swansea Ospreys.[5] The Ospreys part of the team's name was inspired by the use of the bird as Swansea RFC's centenary badge. Former Neath RFC coach Lyn Jones was appointed as head coach, who named Scott Gibbs as the team's first captain.[6] 5 September 2003 saw the region play their first competitive game, a 41–30 Celtic League home win over Irish province Ulster at The Gnoll in Neath.[7] Leeds Tykes were the Ospreys' first Heineken Cup opponents, with the English team triumphing 29–20 on 7 December 2003.[8] They struggled to recover from their opening defeat, finishing bottom of their pool, recording their only victory against the Tykes' at home in the final round at St. Helens.[9] Domestically the Ospreys' did salvage some pride, avoiding becoming the lowest placed Welsh region, by pipping Cardiff Blues to fifth place in the Celtic League.[10]

Following the demise of the Celtic Warriors region on 1 June 2004,[11] Neath-Swansea Ospreys had their borders extended to cover much of the Bridgend and Ogmore areas to the east.[12] However, for logistical reasons it was decided that no home games would be played at Bridgend RFC's Brewery Field.[13] Former Warriors players David Bishop, Brent Cockbain, Ryan Jones and Sonny Parker were signed by the Ospreys'.

2004–2007

The 2004–05 season saw significant on field improvement for the region. A capacity crowd of 10,280 was present at The Gnoll on 26 March 2005 to witness the Ospreys claim their first piece of silverware. A 29–12 win over Edinburgh, with two rounds of the competition still remaining, saw the team crowned Celtic League champions.[14] However, impressive back to back wins over Harlequins were not enough to overcome Munster in the pool stages of that season's Heineken Cup. On 14 May 2005 it was announced that the 'Neath-Swansea' part of the team's name would be dropped, with them to be referred to as the Ospreys.[1]

A growing sense of expectation surrounded the team heading into 2005–06, an expectation they struggled to cope with, finishing a disappointing seventh in the Celtic League. A difficult Heineken Cup pool made up of tough opposition in Leicester Tigers, Stade Francais and ASM Clermont Auvergne proved too difficult, as they finished a distant third. A gutsy home victory over Stade[15] and a last gasp defeat to Leicester,[16] did however offer some crumbs of comfort. In April 2006 it was announced that noted former New Zealand All Blacks scrum half Justin Marshall had signed to play for Ospreys.

The Ospreys won the Celtic League during the 2006/07 season, topping the league by a single point and taking the title with an away win at Borders. Winning the Celtic League for a second time meant the Ospreys were the first team to have won the Celtic League twice. In February 2008, the Ospreys provided 13 of the starting line-up for Wales in their Six Nations match against England, setting a new record for the number of players from one region playing for their national side. During the 2007/08 season the Ospreys reached Quarter-final of the Heineken Cup for the first time but unexpectedly lost to Saracens. The following week they won the EDF Energy Cup beating Leicester Tigers at Twickenham.

In November 2006 when it became apparent that Wales 'A' would not be able to face Australia A national rugby union team midweek during their November tour, the Ospreys became the first Welsh region to play a major international side since regional rugby was introduced, a match they won 24–16.[17] Following the win over the Wallabies, the term Ospreylia became ingrained in popular culture[18][19][20] with it being adopted by the region and its supporters as a description of the geographical area covered by the region, with supporters known as Ospreylians. Peter Black, Assembly Member for south west Wales has declared himself as AM for Ospreylia on his own blog.[21]

On 23 February 2007, the Ospreys played their first 'A' team match, against Newport-Gwent Dragons 'A' at Bridgend, which was the first 'A' match fixture for any of the Welsh regional sides. They lost the match 22–10. They have since gone on to play Worcester 'A' in April, a game which they lost 24–23 to an injury-time penalty.

2008–2011

In February 2008 Andrew Hore was appointed as the Ospreys as elite performance director. Previously Hore had been high performance manager with the New Zealand Rugby Union.[22]

A disappointing seventh-place finish in the Celtic League and a surprise Heineken Cup quarter-final exit to Saracens F.C. saw head coach Lyn Jones resign at the end of the 2007–08 season, on 16 May 2008 Assistant Coach Sean Holley and forwards coach Jonathan Humphreys would continue as part of a new management structure being overseen by Andrew Hore, until a replacement could be found.[23] Scott Johnson, the former head coach of the Welsh national team, and attack coach when Wales won the Six Nations Championship Grand Slam in 2005 for the first time in 27 years, was announced as director of coaching at the Ospreys on 29 January 2009.

On 21 April 2009, the Ospreys had six players included in the British and Irish Lions' squad for the 2009 South African tour: Lee Byrne (fullback), Tommy Bowe and Shane Williams (wings), Mike Phillips (scrum-half), Alun Wyn Jones (lock) and Adam Jones (prop). One notable omission however, was Wales and Ospreys captain Ryan Jones. The Ospreys announced the signing of former New Zealand All Blacks captain Jerry Collins on 9 May 2009.[24] Collins had been a stalwart for the All Blacks, since 2004 but retired from international rugby in 2008.

A 29–28 defeat by Biarritz on 10 April 2010 dashed the team's hopes of a first Heineken Cup semi-final appearance. A late Nicky Walker try in San Sebastien proved in vain.[25] However, on 29 May 2010, the Ospreys won the 2009–10 Celtic League by defeating Leinster in the final by 17–12 at the RDS Arena in Dublin.[26]

Following a wide-ranging review, Andrew Hore, previously elite performance director at the Ospreys, became on 26 April 2011 chief operations officer at the region.[22]

2010–11 would not see the region reach the heights of the previous one. Despite winning all their home pool games in the Heineken Cup, a failure to win on the road proved costly, with Munster and Toulon progressing instead. Another win for Munster at Thomond Park on 14 May 2011, ended the Ospreys Celtic League aspirations at the semi-final stage.[27]

2012–

Former player Steve Tandy was appointed as new Ospreys head coach on 15 February 2012 replacing Sean Holley in the role, as Scott Johnson also departed to take up a coaching role with Scotland.[28] Both Holley and Johnson's final game as part of the coaching setup at the Liberty Stadium had been a 36–5 away loss to Biarritz, which marked the end of a Heineken Cup campaign that saw them again fail to win on their travels. New coach Tandy enjoyed a successful start to his tenure, winning eight of his first ten matches as full-time Head Coach, including winning the 2011–12 Pro12 following a 31–30 win over Leinster at the RDS, thanks to a late Shane Williams try in his final match for the region 29–30 and Dan Biggar adding a difficult conversion for the win 31–30.[29] Ospreys have reached 2 semi-finals in the subsequent 6 seasons, but not made the final.

Honours

Season records

Celtic League / Pro12 / Pro14

Season Pos Played Won Drawn Lost Bonus Points
2003–045th2211110955
2004–051st2016131076
2005–067th221109355[n 1]
2006–071st201406864
2007–087th1861111137
2008–094th181107852
2009–102nd181305652
Semi-finalOspreys 20 – 15 Glasgow Warriors
Grand FinalLeinster 12 – 17 Ospreys
2010–114th2212191363
Semi-finalMunster 18 – 11 Ospreys
2011–122nd221615571
Semi-finalOspreys 45 – 10 Munster
Grand FinalLeinster 30 – 31 Ospreys
2012–135th221417462
2013–145th221318666
2014–153rd221615874
Semi-finalMunster 21 – 18 Ospreys
2015–168th2211110955
2016–174th2214081369
Semi-finalMunster 23 – 3 Ospreys
2017–18Conference A, 5th219112844
7th Champions Cup place PlayoffUlster 35 – 17 Ospreys
2018–19Conference A, 4th2112091058
7th Champions Cup place PlayoffOspreys 21 – 10 Scarlets
2019-20 Conference A, 7th15[n 2]2211517
  1. 11 teams were involved in this season, so one team did not play each week and were awarded 4 points instead.
    Therefore, each team finished the season with 8 more points than the table would seem to warrant.
    • Only 15 rounds were played during the 2019-20 season due to the COVID-19 pandemic in Europe.[30]

    Celtic Cup

    Season Round Match
    2003–04 1st Leinster 35 – 21 Neath-Swansea Ospreys

    Heineken Cup / Rugby Champions Cup

    Season Pool/Round Pos Played Won Drawn Lost Bonus Points
    2003–04 Pool 24th610504
    2004–05 Pool 43rd6303214
    2005–06 Pool 43rd620419
    2006–07 Pool 32nd6411220
    2007–08 Pool 22nd6501121
    Quarter-final Saracens 19 – 10 Ospreys
    2008–09 Pool 32nd6402420
    Quarter-final Munster 43 – 9 Ospreys
    2009–10 Pool 32nd6411220
    Quarter-final Biarritz Olympique 29 – 28 Ospreys
    2010–11 Pool 33rd6303214
    2011–12 Pool 53rd6213313
    2012–13 Pool 23rd6213212
    2013–14 Pool 14th610515
    2014–15 Pool 53rd611439
    2015–16 Pool 23rd6303416
    2017–18 Pool 23rd6213515
    2019–20 Pool 44th600622

    Rugby Challenge Cup

    Season Pool/Round Pos Played Won Drawn Lost Bonus Points
    2016–17 Pool 21st6600630
    Quarter-final Ospreys 21–25 Stade Français
    2018–19 Pool 22nd6204513

    Anglo-Welsh Cup

    Season Group/Round Pos Played Won Drawn Lost Bonus Points
    2005–06Group A3rd310226
    2006–07Group A1st3300214
    Semi-finalOspreys 27 – 10 Cardiff Blues
    FinalLeicester Tigers 41 – 35 Ospreys
    2007–08Group C1st3300214
    Semi-finalOspreys 30 – 3 Saracens
    FinalOspreys 23 – 6 Leicester Tigers
    2008–09Group C1st3201210
    Semi-finalGloucester 17 – 0 Ospreys
    2009–10Pool 14th410315
    2010–11Pool 43rd4301214
    2011–12Pool 13rd410315
    2012–13Pool 43rd410326
    2013–14Pool 32nd410326
    2014–15Pool 42nd410316
    2016–17Pool 22nd4301315
    2017–18Pool 44th410304

    Home grounds

    Liberty Stadium

    In their first two seasons, the Ospreys shared their home games between St Helen's (home ground of Swansea RFC) and The Gnoll (home ground of Neath RFC). Since their third season in 2005–06, they have played at the purpose-built 20,000 seat Liberty Stadium in Landore, Swansea, which is shared with Swansea City. The Liberty Stadium, with double the capacity of St Helen's, has seen a capacity crowd for the matches against international tourists Australia 'A' team (1 November 2006[31]) and against local rivals the Scarlets.[32] On 12 November 2010 the team played their first competitive fixture at the Brewery Field home ground of Bridgend Ravens in the Anglo-Welsh Cup.[33]

    Kit suppliers

    From their foundation to the 2013–14 season, the Ospreys kit suppliers were Kooga. Between the seasons 2014–2017, BLK supplied the Ospreys kits. Canterbury will supply the kits for the 2018 season onwards. Lovell Rugby will replace BT Sport as shirt centre sponsor.

    Current standings

    2020–21 Pro14 Table
    Conference A
    Team P W D L PF PA PD TF TA TBP LBP PTS
    1 Leinster 111001396161+235561910050
    2 Ulster 111001335180+15545246046
    3 Ospreys 11605215217-224251227
    4 Glasgow Warriors 10307177222-4521270315
    5 Dragons 9306148223-7516281114
    6 Zebre 11308157355-19815480113
    Conference B
    Team P W D L PF PA PD TF TA TBP LBP PTS
    1 Munster 11902292185+10734184242
    2

    Connacht

    10505248223+2533294327
    3 Cardiff Blues 12606174203-2919221126
    4 Scarlets 12507200227-2720241425
    5 Edinburgh 10406165223-5818281219
    6 Benetton 100010161249-882130055
    If teams are level at any stage, tiebreakers are applied in the following order -[34]
    1. number of matches won
    2. the difference between points for and points against
    3. the number of tries scored
    4. the most points scored
    5. the difference between tries for and tries against
    6. the fewest red cards received
    7. the fewest yellow cards received
    Green background indicates teams that will compete in the Pro14 Final, and also earn a place in the 2021–22 European Champions Cup

    Blue background indicates teams outside the play-off places that earn a place in the 2021–22 European Champions Cup
    Yellow background indicates the fourth-ranked eligible teams in each conference that play-off against each other for the seventh place in the 2021–22 European Champions Cup
    Plain background indicates teams that earn a place in the 2021–22 European Rugby Challenge Cup.
    (CH) Champions. (RU) Runners-up. (PO) Champions Cup play-off winners.

      Current squad

      Ospreys Pro14 squad[lower-alpha 1]

      Props

      Hookers

      Locks

      Back row

      Scrum-halves

      Fly-halves

      Centres

      Wings

      Fullbacks

      (c) denotes the team captain, Bold denotes internationally capped players.
      * denotes players qualified to play for Wales on residency or dual nationality.
      ST denotes players signed on a short-term basis.
      L denotes a player on loan at the club.
      Players and their allocated positions from the Ospreys website.[35]
      1. Taking into account signings and departures head of 2020–21 season as listed on List of 2020–21 Pro14 transfers.

      Development Squad

      Ospreys Development squad[lower-alpha 1]

      Props

      • Rhys Davies
      • Garyn Phillips

      Hookers

      • Garin Lloyd

      Locks

      • James Fender
      • Lewis Jones
      • Rhys Thomas

      Back row

      • Cai Davies
      • Tristan Davies
      • Harri Deaves
      • Jordan Evans
      • Travis Huntley
      • Benji Williams

      Scrum-halves

      • None currently named

      Fly-halves

      • None currently named

      Centres

      • Bradley Roderick

      Wings

      • Josh Carrington
      • Callum Dodd

      Fullbacks

      • Cori Lewis-Jenkins
      (c) denotes the team captain, Bold denotes internationally capped players.
      * denotes players qualified to play for Wales on residency or dual nationality.
      Players and their allocated positions from the Ospreys website.[36][37][38]
      1. Taking into account signings and departures head of 2020–21 season as listed on List of 2020–21 Pro14 transfers.

      Coaching staff

      Position Name Nationality
      Managing Director Andrew Millward  Wales
      Rugby General Manager Dan Griffiths  Wales
      Development Director Mike Ruddock  Wales
      Head Coach Toby Booth  England
      First Team Coach Duncan Jones  Wales
      Attack coach Brock James  Australia
      Defence coach Richie Pugh  Wales
      Kicking skills coach James Hook  Wales
      Skills coach Richard Fussell  Wales
      Skills coach Andrew Bishop  Wales
      Team Logistics Manager Dai Davies  Wales
      Head of Physical Performance Simon Church  Wales
      Strength & Conditioning Alex Lawson  Wales
      Medical Performance Manager Chris Towers  Wales
      Physiotherapist Anthony Carter  Wales
      Physiotherapist Matthew Bowen  Wales
      Physiotherapist Gavin Daglish  Wales
      Sports Therapist Dan Maru  Wales
      Lead Doctor Simon Davies  Wales
      Senior Analyst Aled Griffiths  Wales
      Analyst Dan Hiscocks  Wales
      Kit Custodian Shaun McAuliffe  Wales
      Sports Psychologist Steve Mellalieu  Wales
      Dietician Jon Williams  Wales

      Notable players & coaches

      Welsh Internationals

      The following players have represented Wales internationally and represented the Ospreys.[39]

      British and Irish Lions

      The following players were selected for the British and Irish Lions touring squads while playing for the Ospreys:[40]

      Centurions

      Players who have reached the 100 appearance mark for the Ospreys. The first numbers in brackets are the years they represented the Ospreys, while the second numbers in bold are the number of caps they received. Caps updated on 24 January 2021.

      Notable non-Welsh players

      Notable non-Welsh players who have international caps to their name and represented the Ospreys.[39]

      Former Coaches

      ERC Elite Awards

      During the 10th anniversary season of the Heineken Cup, ERC, the tournament organisers, introduced the ERC Elite Awards scheme to recognise and reward the glittering list of elite players and teams who have made outstanding contributions to the northern hemisphere's leading club rugby tournament.

      Ospreys were awarded the ERC team award for playing 50 games[41]

      Ospreys players who have been awarded 50 tournament caps are:[42]

      See also

      Footnotes

      1. Rugby News www.walesonline.co.uk, accessed 22 October 2020
      2. Ospreys in name change: IN A bold move the Neath-Swansea Ospreys will be known as just The Ospreys from next season 14 May 2005 www.walesonline.co.uk, accessed 22 October 2020
      3. Updated 9:58am 2 November 2012 (28 October 2006). "Rugby puts Ospreylia on the map - Rugby Columnists - Rugby". WalesOnline. Retrieved 2 November 2012.
      4. "Ospreys 24-16 Australia". BBC News. 1 November 2006. Retrieved 2 November 2012.
      5. "Ospreys set to soar". BBC News. 24 July 2003. Retrieved 2 November 2012.
      6. Administrator, Sotic (2 September 2003). "News : Who Are The Ospreys?". Ulster Rugby. Archived from the original on 5 February 2013. Retrieved 2 November 2012.
      7. "Ospreys soar on debut". BBC News. 5 September 2003. Retrieved 2 November 2012.
      8. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 7 April 2014. Retrieved 12 July 2012.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
      9. Sport (1 February 2004). "Heineken Cup Round-up". The Telegraph. London. Retrieved 2 November 2012.
      10. "Match Centre : Ospreys Have The Last Laugh". RaboDirectPRO12. Retrieved 2 November 2012.
      11. "WRU axe falls on Warriors". BBC News. 1 June 2004. Retrieved 2 November 2012.
      12. "Regions call to ex-Warriors". BBC News. 7 July 2004. Retrieved 2 November 2012.
      13. "Ospreys shun Brewery Field". BBC News. 3 August 2004. Retrieved 2 November 2012.
      14. "Ospreys 29-12 Edinburgh". BBC News. 26 March 2005. Retrieved 2 November 2012.
      15. "ERC : Match Centre : Heineken Cup : Ospreys Take Points After Tense Thriller". Ercrugby.com. Retrieved 2 November 2012.
      16. "ERC : Match Centre : Heineken Cup : Tigers Snatch Late Victory". Ercrugby.com. 7 February 2006. Retrieved 2 November 2012.
      17. "Wallabies to face Ospreys". Sky Sports. Retrieved 16 August 2006.
      18. Rugby puts Ospreylia on the map WalesOnline, 28 October 2006
      19. Ordnance Survey maps out special edition for 'Ospreylia' WalesOnline, 27 October 2006
      20. Amazon found in the continent called Ospreylia WalesOnline, 17 April 2006
      21. "Probably the best region in the World". Peter Black AM. Retrieved 6 September 2007.
      22. GMT (26 April 2011). "BBC Sport - New role for Andrew Hore at the Ospreys". Bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 2 November 2012.
      23. "Celtic League – Jones leaves Ospreys". Yahoo! Sport UK & Ireland. 16 May 2008. Retrieved 16 May 2008.
      24. Club (10 May 2009). "Jerry Collins signs for Ospreys". The Telegraph. London. Retrieved 2 November 2012.
      25. "BBC Sport - Rugby Union - Biarritz 29-28 Ospreys". BBC News. 10 April 2010. Retrieved 2 November 2012.
      26. Petrie, Richard (29 May 2010). "Leinster 12–17 Ospreys". BBC Sport. Retrieved 31 May 2010.
      27. "Match Centre : Munster set up Limerick showdown with Leinster". RaboDirectPRO12. 14 May 2011. Retrieved 2 November 2012.
      28. GMT (15 February 2012). "Steve Tandy replaces Sean Holley as Ospreys coach". Bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 2 November 2012.
      29. RaboDirect Pro12 Final: Leinster 30-31 Ospreys www.bbc.co.uk, accessed 22 October 2020
      30. "Pro14 restart: 2019-20 season resumes with derby weekends". BBC.co.uk. BBC Sport. 22 July 2020. Retrieved 13 August 2020.
      31. Ospreys 24–16 Australia BBC Sport, 1 November 2006
      32. Ospreys 50–24 Scarlets BBC Sport, 26 December 2006
      33. "Kristian Phillips inspires Ospreys to victory over Leicester Tigers". The Guardian. London. 12 November 2010.
      34. Competition Rule 3.5 "Summary of Key Rules". Pro14. Retrieved 22 February 2013.
      35. "2017/2018 Ospreys Squad". Ospreys. Retrieved 24 September 2018.
      36. "Academy Squad". Ospreys. Retrieved 9 December 2020.
      37. "Meet the Academy". Ospreys. 9 December 2020. Retrieved 9 December 2020.
      38. "Ospreys team to face Zebre". Ospreys. 1 November 2020. Retrieved 2 November 2020.
      39. "Internationals who have played for Ospreys at some time during their career". Archived from the original on 4 January 2016. Retrieved 6 February 2017.
      40. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 23 December 2016. Retrieved 6 February 2017.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
      41. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 4 August 2012. Retrieved 4 January 2013.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
      42. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 4 August 2012. Retrieved 4 January 2013.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
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