Powderpuff Ospreys beaten

Gloucester comfortably overcame a tame Ospreys side at Kingsholm.

Gloucester 23-7 Ospreys

Powergen Cup, Kingsholm, Saturday October 1, KO 2.30pm

Gloucester continued their superb start to the 2005/06 season, taking their Premiership form into the Powergen Cup to beat the Ospreys 23-7 at Kingsholm.

An early James Simpson-Daniel try and a late Henry Paul effort proved to be enough to see off the tame Ospreys, who never really got into the match at any point in the afternoon, despite Steve Tandy's touch down.

The Cherry-and-Whites got off to the perfect start inside two minutes, catching their Welsh counterparts napping to score a simple try.

A simple set piece move saw Ludovic Mercier take the ball on the loop, before popping the ball to James Simpson-Daniel to coast in from 10 yards.

The Ospreys responded positively - twice forcing their way up to the 22, but they turned the ball over too easily on both occasions, allowing Gloucester to settle on their lead.

A Mercier penalty extended the advantage, before Mike Tindall received a real let-off, after his telegraphed pass was easily anticipated by Jonny Vaughton, but the winger failed to hold onto the ball.

The visitors were not left to rue the missed opportunity for long though, after a fine break from scrum half Jason Spice was halted five yards from the line, with Steve Tandy going over on the offload.

The boot of the reliable Mercier then opened up a six point lead, as his counterpart Matthew Jones toiled at the other end.

The French outside half has enjoyed a superb start to the season, directing the Gloucester attack, and his kicking out of hand was on a par with his goal-kicking early on.

The half petered out towards the interval, although the Cherry-and-Whites twice missed good overlap opportunities due to pressured forward passes from Tindall.

A frenetic restart saw Andrew Newman lucky to avoid a yellow card just five minutes in, after the big second row was guilty of twice attempting to grab the shoulder of Alex Brown whilst the Gloucester forward was airborne in the lineout.

Much like the first half, the home side were the aggressors with the half back combination of Haydn Thomas and Mercier functioning impressively, whilst man-of-the-match Jake Boer secured plenty of ball for his backs to play with.

A strong Kingsholm wind blew in the faces of the Welshman as they struggled to find a way back into the second half, and Gloucester took the opportunity to push themselves nine points clear with another penalty.

Frustration began to kick in midway through the half as the Ospreys continued to plough an unrewarded furrow, and Richard Mustoe was sin binned in his attempts to gain ball for his team.

The home side worked tirelessly for the full 10 minutes with a man advantage, opting to attack with penalty after penalty, catching and driving before Henry Paul finally found a gap to put the game beyond doubt.

Gloucester: (13) 23
Tries: Simpson-Daniel, Paul
Cons: Mercier 2
Pens: Mercier 3

Ospreys: (7) 7
Tries: Tandy
Cons: Jones