By David Parsons
They’re dusting off the ‘sold out’ signs for the Arms Park ahead of the New Year’s Day clash between Cardiff Rugby and the Ospreys.
Both teams will come into the game on the back of regional derby triumphs over Christmas and the visitors will no doubt have a whiff of revenge in mind after losing out to Cardiff at Judgement Day in the Welsh capital at the end of last season.
That defeat didn’t stop the Ospreys carrying off the Welsh Shield once again. They reached the play-offs in the BKT United Rugby Championship and also the quarter finals in the EPCR Challenge Cup.
But this season it is Matt Sherratt’s city slickers who ended the first half of the season as the top dogs.
It will be 3rd v 14th as far as their respective positions in the URC table are concerned, but neither coach believes that will have any bearing on what happens on the day.
“The fact they are 3rd and we are 14th doesn’t look good from our perspective, and we aren’t proud of that, but it won’t affect our prospects on the day. Derby games are one offs,” said Ospreys head coach Mark Jones.
“If we get our performance right in this game then we will have a good chance of winning it. We were within a score coming into the final few minutes against the Scarlets and managed to win that one.
“We weren’t happy at having to let it go to the 81st minute before wrapping up the win against the Ospreys. We don’t want it to go that late into the game in Cardiff.
“We felt we had put enough pressure on them, and many enough entries into their 22, to have won it earlier. But it isn’t always about how many times you get into the opposition 22, it’s about what you do when you get there.”
The Ospreys are without Wales captain Dewi Lake after his operation and will have Sam Parry packing down at hooker, but they do have Rhys Davies and James Ratti back in action.
Davies starts in the second row while Ratti is set to come off the bench against his former club.
Cardiff will parade one of their former academy products, the Wales U20 cap Louie Hennessey, at centre as he makes his first senior appearance on loan from Bath.
He will have Ben Thomas inside him, Josh Adams outside him and Cam Winnett behind him, so it will be interesting to see if he lives up to his billing and thrives in such exalted company.
“We’ve got Louie for our league games, but he will go back to Bath for the European fixtures. It’s a great opportunity for him and gives us the chance to give Rey Lee-Lo a bit of a break,” said head coach Sherratt.
“He knew a few of the younger players in the squad and he has settled in very well. He’s had about five training sessions with us and seems to be enjoying the experience of being back at his home town club.”
It will be a baptism of fire coming straight into a Welsh derby, especially with the Ospreys coming fully loaded in midfield with Welsh internationals Keiran Williams and Owen Watkin pairing up in the centre.
Wales Media Awards Winner 2020
Josh MacLeod is ready for Wales recall. Pic: Getty Images.
Just Joshing . . . Old School Scarlets Skipper Macleod Making Up For Lost Time
By Simon Thomas
Scarlets skipper Josh Macleod is a man making up for lost time in a big way.
The luckless flanker has been plagued by injuries over the past few years, including a ruptured Achilles, knee ligament damage, shoulder surgery and hamstring issues.
That’s severely limited his regional appearances – just three last season – and restricted him to only the two Wales caps.
But now he’s finally enjoying a change in fortunes – and grabbing the opportunity with both hands.
Having fully recovered from the serious knee injury he suffered in January, he’s started eight of the Scarlets’ last nine games and has really been making his mark.
Leading by example as captain, he’s demonstrated the all-action endeavour which has seen him called up by Wales in the past and is now resulting in him being mentioned as a squad contender once again.
He’s scored five tries in his last four outings and was Player of the Match in the Challenge Cup victory over Georgian side Black Lion two weeks ago, when he touched down twice and made more tackles (24) than any other player in the competition.
Now he will take his inspirational form into the New Year’s Day big URC derby against the Dragons at Parc y Scarlets.
After everything he has been through, the 28-year-old is understandably happy to be fit and firing.
“I am good. It has taken a fair amount of graft to stay feeling good, but it is pleasing for myself on a personal note, definitely,” he said.
“Obviously, last year was frustrating. Some may argue I was used to it by then. I haven’t had the best of track records, to be honest, since snapping my Achilles.
“Look, it is what it is. The gods decided I wasn’t to play more than three games last season. Thankfully, they are on my side this year and long may that continue.
“The most frustrating part of being injured was from a captaincy perspective. You want to be out there when the team is struggling because you want to be able to contribute. So that was massively frustrating.”
The Monte Carlo-born, but Pembrokeshire-raised Macleod is certainly contributing in a big way now, amid the Scarlets winning four of their last seven matches and being in the hunt during every fixture this season.
“In contrast to last year, it is certainly pleasing that we are in games,” he said.
“We are fighting – desperation, desire, hunger from the boys can never be questioned, which is certainly a positive.
“We have worked hard behind the scenes as players, especially defensively. We have put a massive emphasis on it and it seems to be coming through in games. We have been on song defensively all season.
“But there’s still plenty to work on, plenty to look at, especially going into a big derby.”
Scarlets head coach Dwayne Peel is full of praise for the way his “old school” captain has battled back from successive body blows.
“I am obviously delighted for him because I know he has invested a lot,” said the former Wales scrum-half.
“It’s tough when a player is so committed to playing rugby and then he gets an injury and a long lay-off.
“You see him working so hard to get back and then it happens again, he has another injury.
“So getting him a run of games and this form he has been in now has been great because I know how much it means to him to represent the Scarlets.
“From a leadership perspective, I’ve spoken a number of times about how important he is for us, both on and off the field.
“He’s really growing into that role. He demands high standards of people around him and he also demands high standards of himself. He works bloody hard.
“As a player, it’s his intensity around stuff that’s probably the biggest thing for me. He is an all-in player. That’s probably part of why he picks up a few bumps. He’s all-in with everything he does.
“He’s tough around the breakdown, there’s his tackle work and things like hitting mauls and disrupting mauls, he’s all-in. He’s a great example for players in how he’s wholly committed.
“He’s probably a bit of an old school forward in many ways. He’s got that hard edge about him, which is great.
“I am delighted with the way he is going and delighted for him. It’s great for us as a group to have him on this form and hopefully long may it continue.”
WEDNESADAY, JANUARY 1
Cardiff Rugby v Ospreys
Cardiff Arms Park, Cardiff – KO 15.00 IRE & UK / 16.00 ITA / 17.00 SA
Referee: Ben Breakspear (WRU, 6th league game)
AR 1: Ben Connor (WRU) AR 2: Adam Jones (WRU)
TMO: Tom Spurrier (WRU)
Live on: BBC Wales, Premier Sports, SuperSport, Flo Rugby & URC.tv
Cardiff Rugby: Cam Winnett, Josh Adams, Louie Hennessey, Ben Thomas (CAPT), Gabriel Hamer-Webb, Callum Sheedy, Ellis Bevan, Danny Southworth, Evan Lloyd, Kieron Assiratti, Seb Davies, Teddy Williams, James Botham, Dan Thomas, Alun Lawrence
Replacements: Daf Hughes, Corey Domachowski, Rhys Litterick, Josh McNally, Thomas Young, Taulupe Faletau, Aled Davies, Rory Jennings
Ospreys: Max Nagy, Iestyn Hopkins, Owen Watkin, Keiran Williams, Keelan Giles, Dan Edwards, Reuben Morgan-Williams, Gareth Thomas, Sam Parry, Tom Botha, Rhys Davies, James Fender, Jac Morgan (CAPT), Justin Tipuric, Morgan Morris
Replacements: Lewis Lloyd, Garyn Phillips, Rhys Henry, James Ratti, Morgan Morse, Kieran Hardy, Jack Walsh, Evardi Boshoff
Cardiff Rugby Head Coach Matt Sherratt said: “It’s a case of dust yourselves down and go again (after Boxing Day). The Ospreys are a good side and that had a great win against the Scarlets before Christmas. At the moment, all derbies are tight games with four teams who are quite evenly matched. It’s about coming out on the right side of those little moments. We will need to be at our best but we are looking forward to getting back in front of our home crowd at the Arms Park. The game is already sold out and it promises to be a great occasion. These are the games everyone wants to be a part of and there is a real sense of excitement in the group.”
Ospreys Head Coach Mark Jones said: “Both teams will be on a high after the first round Christmas derbies and we’re expecting another close fought fixture in this one. Cardiff have had a strong start to the season and will be looking to build on that, but our focus is on our own performance and giving a strong account of ourselves on the day.”
Scarlets v Dragons RFC
Parc Y Scarlets, Llanelli – KO 17.15 IRE & UK / 18.15 ITA / 19.15 SA
Referee: Ben Whitehouse (WRU, 105th league game)
AR 1: Craig Evans (WRU) AR 2: Mike English (WRU)
TMO: Aled Griffiths (WRU)
Live on: S4C, Premier Sports, SuperSport, Flo Rugby & URC.tv
Scarlets: Tom Rogers, Ellis Mee, Joe Roberts, Johnny Williams, Blair Murray, Sam Costelow, Gareth Davies, Alec Hepburn, Marnus van der Merwe, Henry Thomas, Alex Craig, Sam Lousi, Max Douglas, Josh Macleod (CAPT), Taine Plumtree
Replacements: Shaun Evans, Kemsley Mathias, Archer Holz, Vaea Fifita Taylor, Jarrod Taylor, Archie Hughes, Ioan Lloyd, Eddie James
Dragons RFC: Cai Evans, Rio Dyer, Jared Rosser, Aneurin Owen, Huw Anderson, Angus O’Brien (CAPT), Rhodri Williams; Rodrigo Martinez, Elliot Dee, Dmitri Arhip, Joe Davies, Ryan Woodman, Shane Lewis-Hughes, Taine Basham, Aaron Wainwright
Replacements: Brodie Coghlan, Dylan Kelleher-Griffiths, Chris Coleman, Nick Thomas, Dan Lydiate, Che Hope, Will Reed, Harry Wilson
Scarlets Head Coach Dwayne Peel said: “The boys have been able to spend some time with their families over Christmas and have come in ready for another massive challenge. We know the Dragons are going to be competitive and are going to be physical, like they were against Cardiff on Boxing Day. Home games are always vitally important, regardless of who you play and we want to put in a big performance in front of our fans.”
Dragons RFC Backs Coach Matt O’Brien said: “We’re looking forward to getting back out on the field and improving on our last performance. There was a lot of good in the game with Cardiff, but also some clear areas that we need to address if we’re to get a positive result in Llanelli. Scarlets have had some good results this season, particularly at home where they have won the last three, stretching back to the start of October. We will need to be at our best, but it’s a New Year’s Day derby and challenge we are all looking forward to.”