Holley upbeat despite defeat

Sean Holley is remaining optimistic about The Ospreys' hopes of progressing to the quarter-finals of the Heineken Cup.

Sean Holley is remaining optimistic about The Ospreys' hopes of progressing to the quarter-finals of the Heineken Cup despite Saturday's setback against Clermont Auvergne. Tommy Bowe had given the Welsh region the perfect start in France with a try after just seven minutes to put them ahead. However, Clermont regrouped and took command of the contest to eventually run out as deserved victors. Australian stand-off Brock James kicked 11 points for the hosts while Julien Malzieu and Napolioni Nalaga notched second-half tries. The defeat means The Ospreys must beat Leicester at the Liberty Stadium next Saturday to stand any chance of progressing to the quarter-finals. Holley is refusing to write off his team's chances and was quick to pay handsome tribute to Clermont. "Full credit goes to Clermont as we were beaten by the better side," he stated. "In fact, they were amazing - especially Brock James. "You have to admire them but we came here with a lot of hope and ambition and we saw that in the early exchanges. "But the penalty count was 14-2 against us and they came in the scrum. That clearly had an effect in the end. "They imposed a lot of pressure on us and, although we defended bravely, the momentum told in the end. "It is an extremely disappointing dressing room and we're disappointed for the fans but Clermont were worthy winners."

Looking forward to Leicester

Of the clash with Leicester, he added: "I'd imagine it would be difficult to pick ourselves up next week if it was a run-of-the-mill match and we weren't playing for anything. "But it's Leicester, we're at home and it's a winner-takes-all clash. It's a rematch from last year. We are still in a position to qualify and that will sharpen our focus. "We can't worry about who we could face in the quarter-finals. We just have to get there."

Cotter content

Clermont, the leaders in the Top 14, now hold a slender one-point advantage over Leicester and The Ospreys. The in-form French outfit travel to northern Italy in the final round to face Viadana, who are winless in the competition. Clermont head coach Vern Cotter said: "The Ospreys came at us early on and found some gaps in our defence. But we tightened up and took control. "It was a hard battle on a heavy pitch so it's a good win. We are in good shape to quality from such a tough group."