Ospreys v Saracens: Teams
The Ospreys have been buoyed by the return of Ryan Jones and Jonathan Thomas for the Heineken Cup rematch with Saracens.
Last Updated: 16/12/11 10:37pm
The Ospreys have been buoyed by the return of Ryan Jones and Jonathan Thomas for the Heineken Cup rematch with Saracens.
The Premiership champions moved top of their pool with a 31-26 victory at Wembley last time out - with the Ospreys gunning for revenge.
Jones and Thomas will bolster the back row, with Kahn Fotuali'i and George Stowers also coming in on the bench.
Head coach Sean Holley said: "We didn't see too much that we didn't expect from Saracens last week, it's just that we didn't deal with it.
"They come with a big driving lineout and a kicking game, an aerial assault. Defensively in the first half we started slowly and gave them a head start.
"You can't afford to do that, it was the difference in the game really. We'll be working hard to ensure we don't give them that head start this week."
Saracens have opted to name an unchanged line-up for the return clash.
Director of rugby Mark McCall does make one change on the bench for the trip to Swansea, though, with South Africa skipper John Smit providing cover at hooker and prop.
Ospreys: 15 Richard Fussell, 14 Tommy Bowe, 13 Andrew Bishop, 12 Ashley Beck, 11 Shane Williams, 10 Dan Biggar, 9 Rhys Webb, 8 Jonathan Thomas, 7 Justin Tipuric (capt), 6 Ryan Jones, 5 Ian Evans, 4 Ian Gough, 3 Adam Jones, 2 Richard Hibbard, 1 Paul James.
Replacements: 16 Huw Bennett, 17 Duncan Jones, 18 Aaron Jarvis, 19 Joe Bearman, 20 George Stowers, 21 Kahn Fotuali'i, 22 Matthew Morgan, 23 Hanno Dirksen.
Saracens: 15 Alex Goode, 14 David Strettle, 13 Owen Farrell, 12 Brad Barritt, 11 Chris Wyles, 10 Charlie Hodgson, 9 Ben Spencer, 8 Ernst Joubert, 7 Jacques Burger, 6 Kelly Brown, 5 Mouritz Botha, 4 Steve Borthwick (c), 3 Matt Stevens, 2 Schalk Brits, 1 Rhys Gill.
Replacements: 16 John Smit, 17 Deon Carstens, 18 Carlos Nieto, 19 George Kruis, 20 Andy Saull, 21 Peter Stringer, 22 Adam Powell, 23 James Short.