North in return for starters as Collins makes No.15 switch
THE Ospreys will face the Dragons in tomorrow’s United Rugby Championship clash in Swansea (3pm) with Michael Collins at fullback and George North named in the centre.
It will be North’s first start since his year-long absence because of a knee injury.
He had previously featured out wide for the Ospreys, but he made an impact in midfield when he came on as a replacement against the Scarlets last week and now starts in the No.13 position.
Usually a centre, Collins will have a run-out as the last line of defence after impressing there in the reshuffle that followed North’s arrival onto the pitch in the Loughor Bridge derby.
“He’s played a ridiculous amount of Super Rugby games at full-back,” said Ospreys head coach Toby Booth. “He’s absolutely fine there.”
It’s a selection that could interest Wayne Pivac as he mulls over options for Wales’ tour of South Africa this summer. He is a known admirer of Collins, having signed him during his tenure as Scarlets head coach, and has previously spoken about the player’s ability to play in more than one position.
The Ospreys make one other change from the team that defeated the Scarlets 54-36, seeing Nicky Smith come in at loosehead prop, with Gareth Thomas featuring on the bench.
Booth’s team will be looking for another convincing performance as they try to maintain the pressure on the Scarlets in the battle to win the Welsh Shield and qualify for next term’s Heineken Champions Cup, but they are taking nothing for granted against their east Wales opponents.
“The Dragons are always competitive and a tough team to play against,” said Booth. “They have a lot of good players, especially around the contact aspects of the game, and a very strong backrow.
“They always contest the ball hard and you saw that facet of their game with the performance away to the Scarlets, which showed if they get their tails up how tough they can be.
“The Dragons will be smarting from last week as well and Welsh derbies create real positive tension for sides to perform well. So, this is about us matching their threat and it’s a massive challenge for us.”
Dragons director of rugby Dean Ryan makes four personnel changes to the starting line-up that lost against Zebre, with the headline being the return of Ollie Griffiths after a five-game absence with a groin injury.
The versatile back-rower slots in at No.8, with Taine Basham switching to openside.
Ryan will hope the outstanding Griffiths can engage form quickly after his latest lay-off.
Fly-half Will Read comes in for his first start, with Sam Davies dropping to the bench. Gonzalo Bertranou lines up at scrum-half and Josh Lewis replaces the injured Jack Dixon at inside centre.
Ryan said: “For us, it’s a derby game and we are looking to get the balance right, with those that are developing while also looking forward and the direction we are going in.”
Ospreys: M. Collins; A. Cuthbert, G. North, O. Watkin, K. Giles; G. Anscombe, R. Webb (capt); N. Smith, D. Lake, T. Francis, A. Beard, A. W. Jones, W. Griffiths, J. Morgan, M. Morris. Reps: S. Parry, G. Thomas, T. Botha, B. Davies, D. Lydiate, R. Morgan-Williams, S. Myler, L. Morgan.
Dragons: J. Williams, R. Dyer, A. Warren, J. Lewis, J. Rosser, W. Reed, G. Bertranou; A. Seiuli, T. Davies, C. Coleman, Joe Davies, Ben Carter, H. Keddie (capt), Taine Basham, O. Griffiths. Reps: J. Benjamin, J. Reynolds, M. Doge, H. Taylor, B. Fry, L. Jones, S. Davies, J. Holmes.
Referee: Adam Jones (WRU).