Koetze comes in for Ospreys debut
OSPREYS hand a debut to Johnny Kotze for tonight’s PRO14 game with Leinster at the RDS Arena (7.35pm).
Meanwhile Sam Davies will be looking forward to celebrating a significant milestone as he makes his 100th Championship appearance
However, the region will be without an array of talent and not just because of the seven Ospreys aces who are currently on autumn duty with Wales.
Missing from action due to injury are Dan Baker and Bradley Davies, who both have knee issues; Scott Williams, Dan Evans, Gheorghe Gajion, and Lesley Klim, who are suffering with hamstring problems; plus Paul James, who has a shoulder injury and Luke Price, who is recovering from a fractured tibia.
Ospreys head coach, Allen Clarke, said: “This is another big challenge for us.
“Leinster away is one of the toughest fixtures in European rugby, regardless of the time of year or the team selected.
“As always, our focus is on our own game, our mindset and our actions. We’ve had an excellent training week but ultimately we’ll be judged by the 80 minutes tomorrow night.”
OSPREYS:
James Hook, Hanno Dirksen, Cory Allen, Johnny Kotze, Keelan Giles, Sam Davies, Tom Habberfield, Rhodri Jones, Scott Otten, Tom Botha, Giorgi Nemsadze, Lloyd Ashley, Olly Cracknell (capt), Sam Cross, James King. Replacements: Sam Parry, Gareth Thomas, Alex Jeffrie, Rob McCusker, Will Jones, Matthew Aubrey, Luke Morgan, Tom Williams