Jones sticks to his young guns
Thu, 08 May 2008 14:09
Ospreys head coach Lyn Jones has again named a team of young guns for the final Magners League outing, against Connacht at the Sportsground on Friday.
Injury and national call-ups have robbed him of almost all his senior stars.
Shane Williams, Sonny Parker, Andrew Bishop, James Hook, Duncan Jones, Adam Jones, Huw Bennett, Ian Gough, Ian Evans, Alun-wyn Jones, Ryan Jones and Jonathan Thomas are all unavailable due to the Welsh national team training camp in Ireland
Seven players are not available for selection due to injury.
Ben Lewis will undergo ACL reconstruction surgery to his right knee on Saturday and faces a six month lay-off.
Aled Brew suffered a hamstring strain at Newport Gwent Dragons last Friday.
Lee Byrne will undergo keyhole surgery on his knee to repair a cartilage defect this week.
Gavin Henson recently underwent keyhole surgery on his damaged ankle ligaments and now faces a 12-week lay-off.
Mike Phillips recently underwent surgery to repair damage to his anterior cruciate and medial collateral ligaments and will be out of action until next season.
Nikki Walker is recovering from a stress fracture of the fibia in the right leg.
Andrew Millward has been ruled out for the season due to a cartilage problem in the right knee and will shortly undergo keyhole surgery.
Jones chose to see the positive in the situation, rather than bemoan the absence of his top players.
"Once again there will be a youthful look to the side that takes to the field on Friday," Jones said.
"It will be another opportunity for some of our youngsters to show what they are capable of and what they can bring to the Ospreys next season when we anticipate that some of them will be challenging some of the more established players.
"I think that everyone watching the Newport Gwent Dragons match on Tuesday will have been impressed by the ability, attitude and desire shown by these youngsters, and will be as excited as we are at what the future holds.
"After impressing off the bench on his debut, Kristian Phillips gets a first start, while on the bench there's another opportunity for Dan Biggar after his brief outing at the Millennium Stadium in the EDF Energy Cup semifinal, and another new name to most supporters in young prop Ryan Bevington from Bridgend RFC."
The Ospreys coach admitted that a lack of experience cost his team earlier this week, when they lost 10-18 to Newport Gwent Dragons.
"The result didn't go our way on Tuesday, an experienced Dragons side closed the game off in the last fifteen minutes, but there was a lot to be pleased about and we'll be looking for more of the same on Friday.
"Sometimes, rugby is about more than just the result, and what we are getting in these final two fixtures is a glimpse of our future. As a regional coach, you have to work to several agendas at once, and as well as winning silverware, which we have achieved this season, we also have a responsibility to develop young talent and I think from the make-up of the 22 named, it is clear that at the Ospreys we are taking that responsibility very seriously.
"At the other end of the scale, we say farewell to a number of players after Friday's game. One of those, Shaun Connor, goes out on a high, making his 100th Ospreys appearance in his final outing for us. I'm delighted for him that he has managed to hit that landmark figure, becoming only the second Osprey to do so. He's been a fantastic servant over the first five years of Ospreys rugby, and we wish him well for the future, as we do with all of the departing players."
Shaun Connor said he was "delighted and honoured" to be playing in his 100th and final Ospreys game.
"When we started off with the region five years ago I never imagined for one moment that I would go on to achieve such a landmark. I've enjoyed every moment of my time with the Ospreys and I've been privileged to work with an excellent coaching team that have achieved a lot in the game.
"Having started to think that I might hit one hundred earlier in the season, the figure had begun to drift away from me and just a few weeks ago I was thinking that I was going to end up going agonisingly close, but ultimately missing out.
"To achieve it, and to end my time at the Ospreys on a positive note gives me tremendous satisfaction, and another good memory of my time with the region."
Ospreys: 15 Gareth Owen, 14 Leigh Bevan, 13 Mark Taylor, 12 Jonathan Spratt, 11 Kristian Phillips, 10 Shaun Connor, 9 Rhys Webb, 8 Tom Smith, 7 Steve Tandy, 6 Hale T-Pole, 5 Lyndon Bateman, 4 Andy Lloyd, 3 Cai Griffiths, 2 Richard Hibbard, 1 Paul James (captain).
Replacements: 16 Ed Shervington, 17 Ryan Bevington, 18 Mike Powell, 19 Marty Holah, 20 Martin Roberts, 21 Dan Biggar, 22 Ashley
Beck.
Date: Friday, May 9
Venue: Sportsground, Galway
Kick-off: 18.30 (17.30 GMT)
Referee: Neil Paterson (Scotland)
Touch judges: David Wilkinson (Ireland), Mark Black (Ireland)
