The Ospreys ( cy, Y Gweilch), formerly the Neath-Swansea Ospreys
''www.walesonline.co.uk'', accessed 22 October 2020 is one of the four professional
rugby union
Rugby union, commonly known simply as rugby, is a close-contact team sport that originated at Rugby School in the first half of the 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand. In its m ...
teams from
Wales
Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the Wales–England border, east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the ...
. They compete in the
United Rugby Championship
The United Rugby Championship (URC) is an annual rugby union competition involving professional teams from Ireland, Italy, Scotland, South Africa, and Wales. The current name was adopted in 2021 when the league expanded to include four South Afr ...
and the
European Rugby Champions Cup. The team formed as a result of
Neath RFC
Neath Rugby Football Club ( cy, Clwb Rygbi Castell-Nedd) is a Welsh rugby union club which plays in the WRU Championship. The club's home ground is The Gnoll, Neath. The team is known as the All Blacks because of the team colours: black with onl ...
and
Swansea RFC
Swansea Rugby Football Club is a Welsh rugby union team which plays in the Welsh Premiership. The club play at St Helen's Rugby and Cricket Ground in Swansea and are also known as ''The Whites,'' in reference to their home kit colours.
History
T ...
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
Aberavon RFC ( cy, Clwb Rygbi Aberafan) is a rugby union club located in the Welsh town of Port Talbot, though the club's name refers to the older settlement of Aberavon which lies on the western side of the town.
The club was founded in 1876 ...
,
Bridgend Ravens
Bridgend Ravens ( cy, Cigfrain Pen-y-bont) (formerly Bridgend RFC) are a semi-professional rugby union club based in Bridgend, South Wales.
They currently play in the Welsh Premier Division and are a feeder club to the Ospreys regional team ...
, and original founding clubs Neath and Swansea. The regional area represented by the team has widely become known for rugby purposes as 'Ospreylia'.
Their main home ground is the
Swansea.com Stadium,
Swansea
Swansea (; cy, Abertawe ) is a coastal city and the second-largest city of Wales. It forms a principal area, officially known as the City and County of Swansea ( cy, links=no, Dinas a Sir Abertawe).
The city is the twenty-fifth largest in ...
, although some smaller profile games have been played at the
Brewery Field
Dunraven Brewery Field ( cy, Cae'r Bragdy Dunraven) is an 8,000 (1,100 seated) capacity sports stadium in Bridgend, Wales. It is the home ground of the rugby union team Bridgend Ravens. Bridgend Athletic RFC often use the ground for their h ...
,
Bridgend
Bridgend (; cy, Pen-y-bont ar Ogwr or just , meaning "the end of the bridge on the Ogmore") is a town in Bridgend County Borough in Wales, west of Cardiff and east of Swansea. The town is named after the Old Bridge, Bridgend, medieval bridge ...
. 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
The osprey (''Pandion haliaetus''), , also called sea hawk, river hawk, and fish hawk, is a diurnal, fish-eating bird of prey with a cosmopolitan range. It is a large raptor reaching more than in length and across the wings. It is brown o ...
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 24–16 in 2006.
History
Infancy
On 24 July 2003 it was announced that the new team jointly representing
Neath RFC
Neath Rugby Football Club ( cy, Clwb Rygbi Castell-Nedd) is a Welsh rugby union club which plays in the WRU Championship. The club's home ground is The Gnoll, Neath. The team is known as the All Blacks because of the team colours: black with onl ...
and
Swansea RFC
Swansea Rugby Football Club is a Welsh rugby union team which plays in the Welsh Premiership. The club play at St Helen's Rugby and Cricket Ground in Swansea and are also known as ''The Whites,'' in reference to their home kit colours.
History
T ...
would be known as the Neath-Swansea Ospreys. 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
Lyn Jones (born 1964) is a former Wales international rugby union player, and now works as a coach. A flanker, Jones has experience at various different levels of the game, both as a player and a coach. Jones played most of his playing career for ...
was appointed as head coach, who named
Scott Gibbs
Ian Scott Gibbs (born 23 January 1971), also known by the nickname of "Car Crash", is a Welsh former rugby footballer who has represented Wales and the Lions in rugby union and Wales and Great Britain in rugby league. Noted feats included his pe ...
as the team's first captain. 5 September 2003 saw the region play their first competitive game, a 41–30
Celtic League
The Celtic League is a pan-Celtic organisation, founded in 1961, that aims to promote modern Celtic identity and culture in Ireland, Scotland, Wales, Brittany, Cornwall and the Isle of Man – referred to as the Celtic nations; it places part ...
home win over Irish province
Ulster
Ulster (; ga, Ulaidh or ''Cúige Uladh'' ; sco, label= Ulster Scots, Ulstèr or ''Ulster'') is one of the four traditional Irish provinces. It is made up of nine counties: six of these constitute Northern Ireland (a part of the United King ...
at
The Gnoll
The Gnoll ( cy, Y Gnol) in Neath, Wales is a sports ground, with a capacity of 6,000 (formerly 15,000). It is used primarily for rugby union and rugby league, although it has also been used previously for association football and cricket. The stad ...
in
Neath
Neath (; cy, Castell-nedd) is a market town and Community (Wales), community situated in the Neath Port Talbot, Neath Port Talbot County Borough, Wales. The town had a population of 50,658 in 2011. The community of the parish of Neath had a po ...
.
Leeds Tykes
Leeds Tykes (formerly Leeds RUFC, Leeds Carnegie and Yorkshire Carnegie) is an English rugby union club in Leeds, West Yorkshire, England, playing in the National League 1.
The club was founded as Headingley FC, but renamed in 1991 when it j ...
were the Ospreys' first
Heineken Cup opponents, with the English team triumphing 29–20 on 7 December 2003. 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. Domestically the Ospreys' did salvage some pride, avoiding becoming the lowest placed Welsh region, by pipping
Cardiff Blues
Cardiff Rugby ( cy, Rygbi Caerdydd) are one of the four professional Welsh rugby union teams. They compete in the United Rugby Championship and in European Professional Club Rugby competitions.
Based in Cardiff, the team play at Cardiff Arms ...
to fifth place in the Celtic League.
Following the demise of the
Celtic Warriors region on 1 June 2004, Neath-Swansea Ospreys had their borders extended to cover much of the
Bridgend
Bridgend (; cy, Pen-y-bont ar Ogwr or just , meaning "the end of the bridge on the Ogmore") is a town in Bridgend County Borough in Wales, west of Cardiff and east of Swansea. The town is named after the Old Bridge, Bridgend, medieval bridge ...
and
Ogmore areas to the east. However, for logistical reasons it was decided that no home games would be played at
Bridgend RFC
Bridgend Ravens ( cy, Cigfrain Pen-y-bont) (formerly Bridgend RFC) are a semi-professional rugby union club based in Bridgend, South Wales.
They currently play in the Welsh Premier Division and are a feeder club to the Ospreys regional team ...
's
Brewery Field
Dunraven Brewery Field ( cy, Cae'r Bragdy Dunraven) is an 8,000 (1,100 seated) capacity sports stadium in Bridgend, Wales. It is the home ground of the rugby union team Bridgend Ravens. Bridgend Athletic RFC often use the ground for their h ...
. 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
Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian ...
, with two rounds of the competition still remaining, saw the team crowned Celtic League champions. 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.
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 and a last gasp defeat to Leicester, did however offer some crumbs of comfort. In April 2006 it was announced that noted former New Zealand
All Blacks
The New Zealand national rugby union team, commonly known as the All Blacks ( mi, Ōpango), represents New Zealand in men's international rugby union, which is considered the country's national sport. The team won the Rugby World Cup in 1987 ...
scrum half Justin Marshall
Justin Warren Marshall (born 5 August 1973) is a New Zealand former rugby union player. He played 81 games for the New Zealand All Blacks between 1995 and 2005.
Marshall played for the in the Super 12 from 1996 to 2005, winning the competit ...
had signed to play for Ospreys.
The Ospreys won the
Celtic League
The Celtic League is a pan-Celtic organisation, founded in 1961, that aims to promote modern Celtic identity and culture in Ireland, Scotland, Wales, Brittany, Cornwall and the Isle of Man – referred to as the Celtic nations; it places part ...
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
Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the Wales–England border, east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the ...
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
file:Erhard Reuwich Sarazenen 1486.png, upright 1.5, Late 15th-century Germany in the Middle Ages, German woodcut depicting Saracens
Saracen ( ) was a term used in the early centuries, both in Greek language, Greek and Latin writings, to refer ...
. The following week they won the
EDF Energy Cup
The Anglo-Welsh Cup (), was a cross-border rugby union knock-out cup competition that featured the 12 Premiership Rugby clubs and the four Welsh regions. It was a created as a replacement for the RFU Knockout Cup, which featured only English clubs ...
beating
Leicester Tigers at
Twickenham
Twickenham is a suburban district in London, England. It is situated on the River Thames southwest of Charing Cross. Historically part of Middlesex, it has formed part of the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames since 1965, and the boroug ...
.
In November 2006 when it became apparent that Wales 'A' would not be able to face
Australia A national rugby union team
Australia A is the second national Rugby union team of Australia, behind the Wallabies. Matches played under the 'Australia A' title are traditionally non-test match fixtures and often offer a stepping-stone to Wallaby national selection. Aspir ...
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.
Following the win over the Wallabies, the term Ospreylia became ingrained in popular culture 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.
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
Andrew Keith Hore (born 13 September 1978) is a former New Zealand rugby union player. He played for the All Blacks between 2002 and 2013. His position was hooker. He notably played for the Hurricanes in Super Rugby, but also represented the ...
was appointed as the Ospreys as elite performance director. Previously Hore had been high performance manager with the
New Zealand Rugby Union
New Zealand Rugby (NZR) is the governing body of rugby union in New Zealand. It was founded in 1892 as the New Zealand Rugby Football Union (NZRFU), 12 years after the first provincial unions in New Zealand. In 1949 it became an affiliate to t ...
.
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
Lyn Jones (born 1964) is a former Wales international rugby union player, and now works as a coach. A flanker, Jones has experience at various different levels of the game, both as a player and a coach. Jones played most of his playing career for ...
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.
Scott Johnson, the former head coach of the Welsh national team, and attack coach when Wales won the
Six Nations Championship Grand Slam
Grand Slam most often refers to:
* Grand Slam (tennis), one player or pair winning all four major annual tournaments, or the tournaments themselves
Grand Slam or Grand slam may also refer to:
Games and sports
* Grand slam, winning category te ...
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 & Irish Lions
The British & Irish Lions is a rugby union team selected from players eligible for the national teams of England, Ireland, Scotland, and Wales. The Lions are a test side and most often select players who have already played for their national ...
' squad for the 2009 South African tour:
Lee Byrne
Lee Byrne (born 1 June 1980) is a Welsh former professional rugby union and rugby league footballer who played in the 2000s and 2010s.
Club career
Byrne started his career playing rugby union for Bridgend Athletic RFC; and Tondu RFC, as a ful ...
(fullback),
Tommy Bowe
Thomas John Bowe (born 22 February 1984) is an Irish former rugby union player from County Monaghan, Ireland. He played on the wing for Ulster, Ireland and the British & Irish Lions. In March 2012, after four years with Ospreys in Swansea, Wal ...
and
Shane Williams
Shane Mark Williams, (born 26 February 1977) is a Welsh rugby union player most famous for his long and successful tenure as a wing for the Ospreys and the Wales national team. He also played scrum-half on occasion. Williams is the record tr ...
(wings),
Mike Phillips (scrum-half),
Alun Wyn Jones
Alun Wyn Jones (born 19 September 1985) is a Welsh professional rugby union player who plays as a Rugby union/lock, lock for the Ospreys (rugby union), Ospreys and the Wales national rugby union team, Wales national team. He is List of rugby u ...
(lock) and
Adam Jones (prop). One notable omission however, was Wales and Ospreys captain
Ryan Jones
Ryan Paul Jones (born 13 March 1981) is a Wales former international rugby union player who played at number eight, blindside flanker or second row. He was involved in three Grand Slam wins, in 2005, as captain in 2008, and 2012. He is one ...
. The Ospreys announced the signing of former New Zealand
All Blacks
The New Zealand national rugby union team, commonly known as the All Blacks ( mi, Ōpango), represents New Zealand in men's international rugby union, which is considered the country's national sport. The team won the Rugby World Cup in 1987 ...
captain
Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...
Jerry Collins
Jerry Collins (4 November 1980 – 5 June 2015) was a Samoan – New Zealand rugby union player. He played for New Zealand, for whom he was capped 48 times, as well as for the Wellington Hurricanes in New Zealand, Toulon and Narbonne in the Rug ...
on 9 May 2009. 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. However, on 29 May 2010, the Ospreys won the
2009–10 Celtic League by defeating
Leinster
Leinster ( ; ga, Laighin or ) is one of the provinces of Ireland, situated in the southeast and east of Ireland. The province comprises the ancient Kingdoms of Meath, Leinster and Osraige. Following the 12th-century Norman invasion of Ir ...
in the final by 17–12 at the
RDS Arena
RDS Arena is a multi-purpose sports stadium, owned by the Royal Dublin Society (RDS) and located in the Dublin suburb of Ballsbridge, Ireland.
The arena was developed to host equestrian events, primarily the annual Dublin Horse Show, which was ...
in Dublin.
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.
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
Thomond Park is a stadium in Limerick in the Irish province of Munster. The stadium is owned by the Irish Rugby Football Union and has Munster Rugby, Shannon RFC and UL Bohemian RFC as tenants. Limerick FC played home games in Thomond Park fr ...
on 14 May 2011, ended the Ospreys Celtic League aspirations at the semi-final stage.
2012–2018
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
Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...
. 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
Shane Mark Williams, (born 26 February 1977) is a Welsh rugby union player most famous for his long and successful tenure as a wing for the Ospreys and the Wales national team. He also played scrum-half on occasion. Williams is the record tr ...
try in his final match for the region 29–30 and Dan Biggar adding a difficult conversion for the win 31–30. Ospreys have reached 2 semi-finals in the subsequent 6 seasons, but not made the final.
Following a poor start to the 2017–2018 season, Tandy was sacked by the Ospreys. Forwards coach
Allen Clarke took over on an interim basis, before agreeing to a three year deal as head coach.
2018–
For the 2018–2019 season, along with new head coach Clarke,
Matt Sherratt joined the coaching staff, replacing Gruff Rees. The season also began with notable squad changes, with record points scorer
Dan Biggar departing for
Northampton Saints
Northampton Saints (officially Northampton Rugby Football Club) is a professional rugby union club from Northampton, England. They play in Premiership Rugby, England's top division of rugby.
They were formed in 1880 as "Northampton St. James", ...
, and stalwart
Paul James retiring. The Ospreys were boosted with the signings of Welsh internationals
George North
George Philip North (born 13 April 1992) is a Welsh professional rugby union player who plays for the Ospreys in the United Rugby Championship and the Wales national team. He has also represented the British & Irish Lions and currently has th ...
,
Scott Williams, and
Aled Davies. The season saw a modest improvement fot the Ospreys, winning 12 matches and losing 9, as well as beating west Wales rivals the Scarlets for a Champions Cup place.
Season records
Celtic League / Pro12 / Pro14 / URC
Celtic Cup
Heineken Cup / Rugby Champions Cup
Rugby Challenge Cup
Anglo-Welsh Cup
Home grounds
In their first two seasons, the Ospreys shared their home games between
St Helen's (home ground of
Swansea RFC
Swansea Rugby Football Club is a Welsh rugby union team which plays in the Welsh Premiership. The club play at St Helen's Rugby and Cricket Ground in Swansea and are also known as ''The Whites,'' in reference to their home kit colours.
History
T ...
) and
The Gnoll
The Gnoll ( cy, Y Gnol) in Neath, Wales is a sports ground, with a capacity of 6,000 (formerly 15,000). It is used primarily for rugby union and rugby league, although it has also been used previously for association football and cricket. The stad ...
(home ground of
Neath RFC
Neath Rugby Football Club ( cy, Clwb Rygbi Castell-Nedd) is a Welsh rugby union club which plays in the WRU Championship. The club's home ground is The Gnoll, Neath. The team is known as the All Blacks because of the team colours: black with onl ...
). Since their third season in 2005–06, they have played at the purpose-built 20,000 seat
Liberty Stadium
The Swansea.com Stadium ( cy, Stadiwm Swansea.com; formerly Liberty Stadium) is an all-seated sports stadium and conferencing venue located in the Landore area of Swansea, Wales. The stadium opened in 2005 and was named the Liberty Stadium. It ...
in
Landore
Landore ( cy, Glandŵr) is a district and community in Swansea, Wales. The district falls in the Landore council ward. A mainly residential area, it is located about 2.5 miles north of Swansea city centre. The north-easterly part of Landore i ...
,
Swansea
Swansea (; cy, Abertawe ) is a coastal city and the second-largest city of Wales. It forms a principal area, officially known as the City and County of Swansea ( cy, links=no, Dinas a Sir Abertawe).
The city is the twenty-fifth largest in ...
, 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) and against local rivals the
Scarlets
The Scarlets () are one of the four professional Welsh rugby union teams and are based in Llanelli, Wales. Their home ground is the Parc y Scarlets stadium. They play in the United Rugby Championship and the European Rugby Champions Cup (which ...
. On 12 November 2010 the team played their first competitive fixture at the
Brewery Field
Dunraven Brewery Field ( cy, Cae'r Bragdy Dunraven) is an 8,000 (1,100 seated) capacity sports stadium in Bridgend, Wales. It is the home ground of the rugby union team Bridgend Ravens. Bridgend Athletic RFC often use the ground for their h ...
home ground of
Bridgend Ravens
Bridgend Ravens ( cy, Cigfrain Pen-y-bont) (formerly Bridgend RFC) are a semi-professional rugby union club based in Bridgend, South Wales.
They currently play in the Welsh Premier Division and are a feeder club to the Ospreys regional team ...
in the
Anglo-Welsh Cup
The Anglo-Welsh Cup (), was a cross-border rugby union knock-out cup competition that featured the 12 Premiership Rugby clubs and the four Welsh regions. It was a created as a replacement for the RFU Knockout Cup, which featured only English clubs ...
.
Kit suppliers
From their foundation to the 2013–14 season, the Ospreys kit suppliers were
Kooga
BLK (initials for "Beyond Limits Known") is an Australian sporting goods manufacturing company which was established in 1999 in the city of Gold Coast in Queensland.
The overall but now heavily transitioned company has origins as far back as ...
. Between the seasons 2014–2017,
BLK supplied the Ospreys kits.
Canterbury
Canterbury (, ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and UNESCO World Heritage Site, situated in the heart of the City of Canterbury local government district of Kent, England. It lies on the River Stour, Kent, River Stour.
...
supplied the kits for the 2018–2021 seasons. Starting for the 2021/22 season, the Ospreys would form a kit partnership with
Umbro
Umbro is an English sports equipment manufacturer founded in 1924 in Wilmslow, Cheshire and based in Manchester. They specialise in football and rugby sportswear featuring their ''Double Diamond'' logo. Umbro products are marketed in over 10 ...
.
Current standings
Current squad
Development Squad
Management & Coaching staff
Management
Coaching
Notable players & coaches
Welsh Internationals
The following players have represented
Wales
Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the Wales–England border, east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the ...
internationally and represented the Ospreys.
British & Irish Lions
The following players were selected for the
British & Irish Lions
The British & Irish Lions is a rugby union team selected from players eligible for the national teams of England, Ireland, Scotland, and Wales. The Lions are a test side and most often select players who have already played for their national ...
touring squads while contracted to the Ospreys:
*
Brent Cockbain:
2005
*
Gavin Henson
Gavin Lloyd Henson (born 1 February 1982) is a Welsh former professional rugby union player, who played as a fly-half, fullback and inside centre.
Between 2000 and 2019 he played for Llanelli, Swansea RFC, the Ospreys, Saracens, Toulon, Ca ...
:
2005
*
Ryan Jones
Ryan Paul Jones (born 13 March 1981) is a Wales former international rugby union player who played at number eight, blindside flanker or second row. He was involved in three Grand Slam wins, in 2005, as captain in 2008, and 2012. He is one ...
:
2005,
2009
*
Shane Williams
Shane Mark Williams, (born 26 February 1977) is a Welsh rugby union player most famous for his long and successful tenure as a wing for the Ospreys and the Wales national team. He also played scrum-half on occasion. Williams is the record tr ...
:
2005,
2009
*
Tommy Bowe
Thomas John Bowe (born 22 February 1984) is an Irish former rugby union player from County Monaghan, Ireland. He played on the wing for Ulster, Ireland and the British & Irish Lions. In March 2012, after four years with Ospreys in Swansea, Wal ...
:
2009
*
Lee Byrne
Lee Byrne (born 1 June 1980) is a Welsh former professional rugby union and rugby league footballer who played in the 2000s and 2010s.
Club career
Byrne started his career playing rugby union for Bridgend Athletic RFC; and Tondu RFC, as a ful ...
:
2009
*
Adam Jones:
2009,
2013
File:2013 Events Collage V2.png, From left, clockwise: Edward Snowden becomes internationally famous for leaking classified NSA wiretapping information; Typhoon Haiyan kills over 6,000 in the Philippines and Southeast Asia; The Dhaka garment fact ...
*
Alun Wyn Jones
Alun Wyn Jones (born 19 September 1985) is a Welsh professional rugby union player who plays as a Rugby union/lock, lock for the Ospreys (rugby union), Ospreys and the Wales national rugby union team, Wales national team. He is List of rugby u ...
:
2009,
2013
File:2013 Events Collage V2.png, From left, clockwise: Edward Snowden becomes internationally famous for leaking classified NSA wiretapping information; Typhoon Haiyan kills over 6,000 in the Philippines and Southeast Asia; The Dhaka garment fact ...
,
2017,
2021
File:2021 collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: the James Webb Space Telescope was launched in 2021; Protesters in Yangon, Myanmar following the 2021 Myanmar coup d'état, coup d'état; A civil demonstration against the October–November 2021 ...
*
Mike Phillips:
2009
*
James Hook James Hook may refer to:
* Captain Hook, the villain of J. M. Barrie's play and novel ''Peter Pan''
* James Hook (composer) (1746–1827), English composer and organist
* James Hook (priest) (1771–1828), English priest, Dean of Worcester
* Jame ...
:
2009
*
Richard Hibbard
Richard Hibbard (born 13 December 1983) is a Wales international rugby player currently playing for the Dragons.
Hibbard was born in Neath, Wales. He’s married with 3 children. A hooker, he started playing rugby at age grade levels at clubs ...
:
2013
File:2013 Events Collage V2.png, From left, clockwise: Edward Snowden becomes internationally famous for leaking classified NSA wiretapping information; Typhoon Haiyan kills over 6,000 in the Philippines and Southeast Asia; The Dhaka garment fact ...
*
Ian Evans:
2013
File:2013 Events Collage V2.png, From left, clockwise: Edward Snowden becomes internationally famous for leaking classified NSA wiretapping information; Typhoon Haiyan kills over 6,000 in the Philippines and Southeast Asia; The Dhaka garment fact ...
*
Justin Tipuric
Justin Tipuric ( ; born 6 August 1989) is a Welsh people, Welsh international rugby union player who plays for Wales national rugby union team, Wales as an Flanker (rugby union), openside flanker.
Early life
Tipuric is of Croats, Croatian desce ...
:
2013
File:2013 Events Collage V2.png, From left, clockwise: Edward Snowden becomes internationally famous for leaking classified NSA wiretapping information; Typhoon Haiyan kills over 6,000 in the Philippines and Southeast Asia; The Dhaka garment fact ...
,
2017,
2021
File:2021 collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: the James Webb Space Telescope was launched in 2021; Protesters in Yangon, Myanmar following the 2021 Myanmar coup d'état, coup d'état; A civil demonstration against the October–November 2021 ...
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Dan Biggar:
2017
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Rhys Webb
Rhys Webb (born 9 December 1988) is a Welsh rugby union player who plays as a scrum-half for Ospreys. Born in Bridgend, he is a product of the Ospreys academy and played club rugby for Bridgend RFC and Aberavon RFC before breaking into the regi ...
:
2017
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Adam Beard:
2021
File:2021 collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: the James Webb Space Telescope was launched in 2021; Protesters in Yangon, Myanmar following the 2021 Myanmar coup d'état, coup d'état; A civil demonstration against the October–November 2021 ...
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 18 December 2022.
Notable non-Welsh internationals
Notable non-Welsh players who have international caps with a Tier One or Two nation and represented the Ospreys.
Former Coaches
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Lyn Jones
Lyn Jones (born 1964) is a former Wales international rugby union player, and now works as a coach. A flanker, Jones has experience at various different levels of the game, both as a player and a coach. Jones played most of his playing career for ...
(2003–2008)
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Sean Holley
Sean Holley (born 6 November 1970) is a Broadcaster and Rugby Union Coach
Rugby career
After a year in Australia playing sport Holley played for Maesteg RFC at centre and full back. He studied for a degree in Physical Education & Sports Science ...
(2008–2012)
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Steve Tandy (2012–2018)
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Allen Clarke (2018–2019)
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Carl Hogg
Carl Hogg (born 5 July 1969) is a former Scotland international rugby union player. He is currently the Director of Academy and Development for Gloucester.
Rugby Union career
Amateur career
Hogg was educated at St. Mary's School, Melrose an ...
&
Matt Sherratt (interim) (2019–2020)
Honours
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Celtic League/Pro12/
United Rugby Championship
The United Rugby Championship (URC) is an annual rugby union competition involving professional teams from Ireland, Italy, Scotland, South Africa, and Wales. The current name was adopted in 2021 when the league expanded to include four South Afr ...
:
**''Winners'': 2004–05, 2006–07, 2009–10, 2011–12
**''Welsh Shield Winners'':
2021-22
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Anglo-Welsh Cup
The Anglo-Welsh Cup (), was a cross-border rugby union knock-out cup competition that featured the 12 Premiership Rugby clubs and the four Welsh regions. It was a created as a replacement for the RFU Knockout Cup, which featured only English clubs ...
**''Winners'': 2007–08
**''Runners-up'': 2006–07
ERC Elite Awards
During the 10th anniversary season of the Heineken Cup,
ERC, the tournament organisers, introduced the ERC Elite Awards to recognise players and teams who have made outstanding contributions to the tournament.
Ospreys were awarded the ERC team award for playing 50 games.
Ospreys players who have been awarded 50 tournament caps are:
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Ian Gough
Ian Gough (born 10 November 1976) is a former Wales international rugby union rugby player. His usual position was lock forward. He made his debut for the Wales national rugby union team against South Africa in 1998, and was a regular thereafter, ...
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Adam Jones
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Duncan Jones
Duncan Zowie Haywood Jones (born 30 May 1971) is a British film director, film producer and screenwriter. He is best known for directing the films ''Moon'' (2009), ''Source Code'' (2011), ''Warcraft'' (2016), and ''Mute'' (2018). For ''Moon'', ...
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Shane Williams
Shane Mark Williams, (born 26 February 1977) is a Welsh rugby union player most famous for his long and successful tenure as a wing for the Ospreys and the Wales national team. He also played scrum-half on occasion. Williams is the record tr ...
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Jonathan Thomas
Jonathan Thomas (born 27 December 1982, in Pembroke) is a Welsh rugby union coach and former player, he played mainly at flanker having also played at number eight and lock. He was previously head coach of Worcester Warriors. On January 17t ...
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Sonny Parker
See also
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Pro14
The United Rugby Championship (URC) is an annual rugby union competition involving professional teams from Ireland, Italy, Scotland, South Africa, and Wales. The current name was adopted in 2021 when the league expanded to include four South Afr ...
*
Anglo-Welsh Cup
The Anglo-Welsh Cup (), was a cross-border rugby union knock-out cup competition that featured the 12 Premiership Rugby clubs and the four Welsh regions. It was a created as a replacement for the RFU Knockout Cup, which featured only English clubs ...
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Heineken Cup
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European Challenge Cup
The EPCR Challenge Cup is an annual rugby union competition organised by European Professional Club Rugby (EPCR). It is the second-tier competition for clubs based in European leagues behind the European Rugby Champions Cup. From its inception i ...
Footnotes
External links
Official websiteAberavon RFC (official site)Bridgend RFC (official site)Neath RFC (official site)Swansea RFC (official site)
{{Authority control
Welsh rugby union teams
Rugby union in Swansea
Rugby union in Neath Port Talbot
Rugby clubs established in 2003
United Rugby Championship teams