L Irish v Ospreys: Teams

London Irish have made three changes to their starting line-up for the Heineken Cup visit of the Ospreys on Sunday.

George Stowers moves to blindside flanker from number eight with Chris Hala'ufia coming in at the back of the pack.

Welshman Darren Allinson replaces Paul Hodgson at scrum-half, while Delon Armitage returns at full-back following his compulsory EPS rest last week.

Irish are currently enduring a miserable run of form in all competitions but head coach Toby Booth hopes his side's fortunes are about to change.

"You need to go into games with positivity, energy and intensity in order to win and we have put a huge amount into recent performances," he said.

"The game this weekend will be no exception and the whole team is going out determined to get a win under its belt.

Tactics

"We have been preparing well both tactically and technically and it is important that we create as many opportunities as possible and capitalise on them."

The Ospreys are currently three points behind Pool Three leaders Toulon and face a crucial clash against the Exiles as they look to keep their quarter-final hopes alive.

The visitors welcome back skipper Alun Wyn Jones, as well as fellow internationals Tommy Bowe, Mike Phillips and Adam Jones.

James Hook also returns to the starting XV and is set to make his 100th appearance for the Welsh region in the all-important match.

Head coach Sean Holley said: "This is the first of two season-defining games over the next couple of weekends and you can't fail to be excited by the challenge It's why we're all involved in rugby isn't it?"

He added: "Hopefully, we will be able to get the result we need to set up a real big one against Toulon at the following weekend, where we will need everyone, fans included, to be on top of their game, to blackout the Liberty Stadium."

London Irish: 15 Delon Armitage, 14 Topsy Ojo, 13 Elvis Seveali'i, 12 Seilala Mapusua, 11 Sailosi Tagicakibau, 10 Dan Bowden, 9 Darren Allinson, 8 Chris Hala'Ufia, 7 Steffon Armitage 6 George Stowers, 5 Matthew Garvey, 4 Nick Kennedy, 3 Faan Rautenbach, 2 James Buckland, 1 Alex Corbisiero.
Replacements: 16 Brian Blaney, 17 Dan Murphy, 18 Paulica Ion, 19 Bob Casey, 20 Jamie Gibson, 21 Adam Thompstone, 22 Ryan Lamb, 23 Alfredo Lalanne.

Ospreys: 15 Barry Davies, 14 Nikki Walker, 13 Tommy Bowe, 12 James Hook, 11 Richard Fussell, 10 Dan Biggar, 9 Mike Phillips, 8 Jonathan Thomas, 7 Marty Holah, 6 Jerry Collins, 5 Alun Wyn Jones (capt), 4 Ryan Jones, 3 Adam Jones, 2 Richard Hibbard, 1 Paul James.
Replacements: 16 Huw Bennett, 17 Duncan Jones, 18 Craig Mitchell, 19 Ian Gough, 20 Justin Tipuric, 21 Jamie Nutbrown, 22 Sonny Parker, 23 Lee Byrne.