There will be all to play for when Ospreys host the Vodacom Bulls at Swansea.com Stadium in Wales on tonight. The match will kick-off at 21h10.
The clash between the Vodacom Bulls and Ospreys at the Swansea.com Stadium will be thrilling as both teams give everything to finish as high up on the log as possible, and with the team from Pretoria going in search of their third successive win and Ospreys their fourth, neither team will give an inch.
Out of the three SA sides in the running for home quarter-finals, the Vodacom Bulls face the toughest path, as they have to win with a bonus point and a favourable points difference and rely on the Munster and the DHL Stormers to suffer defeats without bonus points, while the Cell C Sharks and Ulster have to draw their match without bonus points.
The Ospreys have named their team for the final match of the 21/22 season.
Rhys Webb will lead out the side partnering Gareth Anscombe at 10. Luke Morgan comes into the starting line-up alongside Keelan Giles and Michael Collins in the back three.
Owen Watkin and George North form the centre partnership.
Gareth Thomas, Dewi Lake and Tomas Francis form the front row with Adam Beard and Alun Wyn Jones in the second. Will Griffiths, Jac Morgan and Morgan Morris complete the starting pack.
Off the bench, Sam Parry, Nicky Smith and Tom Botha provide the front-row cover with Bradley Davies and Dan Lydiate completing Friday's forward contingent.
Harri Morgan comes onto the bench alongside Stephen Myler and Mat Protheroe who complete the matchday 23.
Toby Booth, Ospreys Head coach, said: “The Bulls are very physical, very strong up front, a very collision and field position based side. They have a good kicking game and if you let their back three have it on their terms, in broken field, they are going to hurt you.
“We saw that against the Stormers, from our own personal experience, so we are expecting the same.
“The good thing for us is that we are at home, with a crowd, we haven’t had to travel and this is on our terms, in that respect.
“It is going to be a massive arm wrestle and a massive challenge, but one we are really looking forward to.”
Vodacom Bulls director of rugby, Jake White, has selected a strong side.
The team will see the return of utility back, David Kriel, who will earn a starting berth at wing, while Cornal Hendricks will also be in the starting XV, partnering with Harold Vorster to make up the midfield combination.
On the bench, backup flyhalf, Juan Mostert, and centre Stedman Gans will have an opportunity to make an impact as substitutes, while Springbok scrumhalf Embrose Papier is likely to spark things in the latter stages of the game.
A strong reserve bench of forwards will include the likes of Jan-Hendrik Wessels, Simphiwe Matanzima, Robert Hunt, Janko Swanepoel and Arno Botha.
“There is a lot to play for in this match, so we expect a huge battle against a motivated Ospreys side that will be looking to claim the Welsh Shield with a win over us,” said White ahead of the game.
“We expect the match to be a tough encounter, with Ospreys set to be, as always, competitive in the set pieces. We have seen what they are capable of, and they will no doubt want to get a good result in front of their home crowd.”
Weather: 13° with 33 km/h WSW wind, partly cloudy with 82% humidity with little chance of rain.
Prediction: Vodacom Bulls by 12.
Teams:
Ospreys: 15. Michael Collins, 14. Luke Morgan, 13. George North, 12. Owen Watkin, 11. Keelan Giles, 10. Gareth Anscombe, 9. Rhys Webb (c), 8. Morgan Morris, 7. Jac Morgan, 6. Will Griffiths, 5. Alun Wyn Jones, 4. Adam Beard, 4. Adam Beard, 3. Tomas Francis, 2. Dewi Lake, 1. Gareth Thomas. Replacements: 16. Sam Parry, 17. Nicky Smith, 18. Tom Botha, 19. Bradley Davies, 20. Dan Lydiate, 21. Harri Morgan, 22. Stephen Myler, 23. Mat Protheroe.
Vodacom Bulls: 15. Canan Moodie, 14. David Kriel, 13. Cornal Hendricks, 12. Harold Vorster, 11. Madosh Tambwe, 12. Chris Smith, 9. Zak Burger, 8. Elrigh Louw, 7. Cyle Brink, 6. Marcell Coetzee (c), 5. Ruan Nortje, 4. Walt Steenkamp, 3. Mornay Smith, 2. Johan Grobbelaar, 1. Gerhard Steenekamp. Replacements: 16. Jan-Hendrik Wessels, 17. Simphiwe Matanzima, 18. Robert Hunt, 19. Janko Swanepoel, 20. Arno Botha, 21. Embrose Papier, 22. Juan Mostert, 23. Stedman Gans.