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The Ospreys hopes of a place in the last eight of the Heineken Cup are hanging by a thread and only a bonus point victory over the most successful side in the tournament will keep those ambitions alive. - 14/12/2012 08:15
The Ospreys hopes of a place in the last eight of the Heineken Cup are hanging by a thread and only a bonus point victory over the most successful side in the tournament will keep those ambitions alive.
The reigning Pro12 champions host the four-time winners of the Heineken Cup, Toulouse, for the first time at home at the Liberty Stadium in Swansea on Saturday afternoon.
The Welsh side produced a creditable performance in their 30-14 defeat in Toulouse – Kahn Fotualii scoring an opportunist try – but it was still a bonus point victory for the French giants and leaders of this hugely competitive Pool.
Toulouse, who lifted the trophy in 1996, 2003, 2005 and 2010, are one of the favourites this season and will want to come away with all the points on offer in Wales.
A bonus point victory would put more pressure on Pool rivals, the Leicester Tigers, who are only three point behind the French side but who travel to play Treviso in Italy.
The Ospreys have reached three Heineken Cup quarter-finals but this season’s failure will mean they haven’t reached the knockout stages for the last three campaigns in Europe.
Toulouse, on the other hand, will already be thinking of a 16th quarter-final and will be looking for a vital home draw in the knockout stages as they go looking for a fifth title.
Match Facts
• Louis Picamoles and Yoann Huget of Toulouse have beaten more defenders than anyone else in the tournament this season (14 each).
• Ospreys boast the top goal kickers in the tournament, as a team their success rate of 96% is not matched by any other side.
• Toulouse collectively average over 21 defenders beaten per match, the highest figure in the tournament.
• Ospreys have lost all three of their previous Heineken Cup meetings with Toulouse, with the closest margin being 16 points (last week’s 30-14 defeat).
En manque d'inspiration et de discipline
The Ospreys kept their hopes of a place in the Heineken Cup quarter-finals alive with a shock win over four-times champions Toulouse at the Liberty Stadium in Swansea.
The former Heineken Cup winners were never troubled in their comfortable 30-14 bonus-point victory over the Welsh region in the first leg of this double-header in Toulouse last weekend.
But the Ospreys still had a mathematical chance of qualification for the knockout stages prior to kick off and they produced a tremendous display to pull off one of the most notable wins in the tournament this term and deny Toulouse even a losing bonus point.
The French giants suffered their first defeat in this season’s pool stages to a young and new-look Ospreys side, with a superb try by wing Eli Walker and the boot of Dan Biggar proving the difference between the two teams.
The Ospreys made a decent fist of things in the first-half, with fly-half Biggar slotting over a penalty and a drop goal, before Toulouse found themselves down to 14 men after lock Patricio Albacete was sin-binned for stamping on Ian Gough.
The home side failed to take any real advantage of the extra man but Biggar did land his second penalty before his opposite number for Toulouse, Jean-Marc Doussain, slotted over a penalty and drop goal to make it 9-6 at half-time.
Walesand Lions prop Adam Jones made his return from injury off the bench to stabilise the retreating Ospreys scrum, before Doussain missed a simple penalty in front of the posts to level the scores.
Toulousesoon found themselves down to 14 for a second time when flanker Jean Bouilhou was shown a yellow card for a high tackle on impressive Ospreys wing Walker.
This time the Ospreys took full advantage of their extra man and a simple passing movement led to Walker crossing for a well-taken try that made it 17-6 midway through the second half.
Centre Ashley Beck could have scored a second try for the home side but he lost the ball over the Toulouse line, and the Ospreys lost prop Jones to a yellow card in the dying moments but they still managed to hold out for a famous victory.
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