The Ospreys ( cy, Y Gweilch), formerly the Neath-Swansea Ospreys
''www.walesonline.co.uk'', accessed 22 October 2020 is one of the four professional rugby union teams from Wales. They compete in the United Rugby Championship and the

European Rugby Champions Cup The European Rugby Champions Cup (known as the Heineken Champions Cup for sponsorship reasons) is an annual rugby union tournament organised by European Professional Club Rugby (EPCR). It is the top-tier competition for clubs who compete in a pre ...

. The team formed as a result of

Neath RFC Neath Rugby Football Club ( cy, Clwb Rygbi Castell-Nedd) is a Welsh rugby union club which plays in the WRU Championship. The club's home ground is The Gnoll, Neath. The team is known as the All Blacks because of the team colours: black with on ...

and Swansea RFC combining to create a new merged entity, as part of the new regional structure of Welsh rugby, that began in 2003. They are also affiliated with a number of local semi-professional and amateur clubs, including Welsh Premier Division sides

Aberavon RFC Aberavon RFC ( cy, Clwb Rygbi Aberafan) is a rugby union club located in the Welsh town of Port Talbot, though the club's name refers to the older settlement of Aberavon which lies on the western side of the town. The club was founded in 187 ...

, Bridgend Ravens, and original founding clubs Neath and Swansea. The regional area represented by the team has widely become known for rugby purposes as 'Ospreylia'. Their main home ground is the

Swansea.com Stadium The Swansea.com Stadium ( cy, Stadiwm Swansea.com; formerly Liberty Stadium) is an all-seated sports stadium and conferencing venue located in the Landore area of Swansea, Wales. The stadium opened in 2005 and was named the Liberty Stadium. It ...

, Swansea, although some smaller profile games have been played at the Brewery Field,

Bridgend Bridgend (; cy, Pen-y-bont ar Ogwr or just , meaning "the end of the bridge on the Ogmore") is a town in Bridgend County Borough in Wales, west of Cardiff and east of Swansea. The town is named after the medieval bridge over the River Ogmo ...

. Ospreys currently play in a black home strip, while the away strip is white and orange. The Ospreys logo consists of an image of an

Osprey The osprey (''Pandion haliaetus''), , also called sea hawk, river hawk, and fish hawk, is a diurnal, fish-eating bird of prey with a cosmopolitan range. It is a large raptor reaching more than in length and across the wings. It is brown o ...

mask. The Ospreys are the most successful Welsh team in the history of the Celtic League or Pro12 tournament, having won the competition four times. They also became the first and only Welsh regional team to beat a major touring side, defeating 24–16 in 2006.

History

Infancy

On 24 July 2003 it was announced that the new team jointly representing

and Swansea RFC would be known as the Neath-Swansea Ospreys. The Ospreys part of the team's name was inspired by the use of the bird as Swansea RFC's centenary badge. Former Neath RFC coach Lyn Jones was appointed as head coach, who named Scott Gibbs as the team's first captain. 5 September 2003 saw the region play their first competitive game, a 41–30

Celtic League The Celtic League is a pan-Celtic organisation, founded in 1961, that aims to promote modern Celtic identity and culture in Ireland, Scotland, Wales, Brittany, Cornwall and the Isle of Man – referred to as the Celtic nations; it places p ...

home win over Irish province Ulster at

The Gnoll The Gnoll ( cy, Y Gnol) in Neath, Wales is a sports ground, with a capacity of 6,000 (formerly 15,000). It is used primarily for rugby union and rugby league, although it has also been used previously for association football and cricket. The stad ...

in Neath. Leeds Tykes were the Ospreys' first Heineken Cup opponents, with the English team triumphing 29–20 on 7 December 2003. They struggled to recover from their opening defeat, finishing bottom of their pool, recording their only victory against the Tykes' at home in the final round at St. Helens. Domestically the Ospreys' did salvage some pride, avoiding becoming the lowest placed Welsh region, by pipping

Cardiff Blues Cardiff Rugby ( cy, Rygbi Caerdydd) are one of the four professional Welsh rugby union teams. They compete in the United Rugby Championship and in European Professional Club Rugby competitions. Based in Cardiff, the team play at Cardiff Arm ...

to fifth place in the Celtic League. Following the demise of the Celtic Warriors region on 1 June 2004, Neath-Swansea Ospreys had their borders extended to cover much of the

and Ogmore areas to the east. However, for logistical reasons it was decided that no home games would be played at

Bridgend RFC Bridgend Ravens ( cy, Cigfrain Pen-y-bont) (formerly Bridgend RFC) are a semi-professional rugby union club based in Bridgend, South Wales. They currently play in the Welsh Premier Division and are a feeder club to the Ospreys regional tea ...

's Brewery Field. Former Warriors players David Bishop, Brent Cockbain, Ryan Jones and Sonny Parker were signed by the Ospreys'.

2004–2007

The 2004–05 season saw significant on field improvement for the region. A capacity crowd of 10,280 was present at The Gnoll on 26 March 2005 to witness the Ospreys claim their first piece of silverware. A 29–12 win over Edinburgh, with two rounds of the competition still remaining, saw the team crowned Celtic League champions. However, impressive back to back wins over Harlequins were not enough to overcome Munster in the pool stages of that season's Heineken Cup. On 14 May 2005 it was announced that the 'Neath-Swansea' part of the team's name would be dropped, with them to be referred to as the Ospreys. A growing sense of expectation surrounded the team heading into 2005–06, an expectation they struggled to cope with, finishing a disappointing seventh in the Celtic League. A difficult Heineken Cup pool made up of tough opposition in

Leicester Tigers Leicester Tigers (officially Leicester Football Club) are a professional rugby union club based in Leicester, England. They play in Premiership Rugby, England's top division of rugby. The club was founded in 1880 and since 1892 plays its ho ...

Stade Francais Stade (), officially the Hanseatic City of Stade (german: Hansestadt Stade, nds, Hansestadt Stood) is a city in Lower Saxony in northern Germany. First mentioned in records in 934, it is the seat of the district () which bears its name. It is ...

and

ASM Clermont Auvergne Association Sportive Montferrandaise Clermont Auvergne () is a French rugby union club from Clermont-Ferrand in Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes that currently competes in Top 14, the top level of the French league system. Clermont are two times French ...

proved too difficult, as they finished a distant third. A gutsy home victory over Stade and a last gasp defeat to Leicester, did however offer some crumbs of comfort. In April 2006 it was announced that noted former New Zealand

All Blacks The New Zealand national rugby union team, commonly known as the All Blacks ( mi, Ōpango), represents New Zealand in men's international rugby union, which is considered the country's national sport. The team won the Rugby World Cup in 1987, ...

scrum half

Justin Marshall Justin Warren Marshall (born 5 August 1973) is a New Zealand former rugby union player. He played 81 games for the New Zealand All Blacks between 1995 and 2005. Marshall played for the in the Super 12 from 1996 to 2005, winning the competit ...

had signed to play for Ospreys. The Ospreys won the

during the 2006/07 season, topping the league by a single point and taking the title with an away win at Borders. Winning the Celtic League for a second time meant the Ospreys were the first team to have won the Celtic League twice. In February 2008, the Ospreys provided 13 of the starting line-up for Wales in their Six Nations match against England, setting a new record for the number of players from one region playing for their national side. During the 2007/08 season the Ospreys reached Quarter-final of the Heineken Cup for the first time but unexpectedly lost to

Saracens upright 1.5, Late 15th-century German woodcut depicting Saracens Saracen ( ) was a term used in the early centuries, both in Greek and Latin writings, to refer to the people who lived in and near what was designated by the Romans as Arabia Pe ...

. The following week they won the

EDF Energy Cup The Anglo-Welsh Cup (), was a cross-border rugby union knock-out cup competition that featured the 12 Premiership Rugby clubs and the four Welsh regions. It was a created as a replacement for the RFU Knockout Cup, which featured only English clubs ...

beating

at Twickenham. In November 2006 when it became apparent that Wales 'A' would not be able to face

Australia A national rugby union team Australia A is the second national Rugby union team of Australia, behind the Wallabies. Matches played under the 'Australia A' title are traditionally non-test match fixtures and often offer a stepping-stone to Wallaby national selection. Aspi ...

midweek during their November tour, the Ospreys became the first Welsh region to play a major international side since regional rugby was introduced, a match they won 24–16. Following the win over the Wallabies, the term Ospreylia became ingrained in popular culture with it being adopted by the region and its supporters as a description of the geographical area covered by the region, with supporters known as Ospreylians. Peter Black, Assembly Member for south west Wales has declared himself as AM for Ospreylia on his own blog. On 23 February 2007, the Ospreys played their first 'A' team match, against Newport-Gwent Dragons 'A' at Bridgend, which was the first 'A' match fixture for any of the Welsh regional sides. They lost the match 22–10. They have since gone on to play Worcester 'A' in April, a game which they lost 24–23 to an injury-time penalty.

2008–2011

In February 2008

Andrew Hore Andrew Keith Hore (born 13 September 1978) is a former New Zealand rugby union player. He played for the All Blacks between 2002 and 2013. His position was hooker. He notably played for the Hurricanes in Super Rugby, but also represented the ...

was appointed as the Ospreys as elite performance director. Previously Hore had been high performance manager with the New Zealand Rugby Union. A disappointing seventh-place finish in the Celtic League and a surprise Heineken Cup quarter-final exit to

Saracens F.C. Saracens Rugby Club () are an English professional rugby union club based in North London, England. As of the current 2022–23 season, they compete in Premiership Rugby, the highest tier competition in English rugby, as well as the domestic ...

saw head coach Lyn Jones resign at the end of the 2007–08 season, on 16 May 2008 Assistant Coach Sean Holley and forwards coach Jonathan Humphreys would continue as part of a new management structure being overseen by Andrew Hore, until a replacement could be found. Scott Johnson, the former head coach of the Welsh national team, and attack coach when Wales won the Six Nations Championship Grand Slam in 2005 for the first time in 27 years, was announced as director of coaching at the Ospreys on 29 January 2009. On 21 April 2009, the Ospreys had six players included in the

British & Irish Lions The British & Irish Lions is a rugby union team selected from players eligible for the national teams of England national rugby union team, England, Ireland national rugby union team, Ireland, Scotland national rugby union team, Scotland, and ...

' squad for the 2009 South African tour:

Lee Byrne Lee Byrne (born 1 June 1980) is a Welsh former professional rugby union and rugby league footballer who played in the 2000s and 2010s. Club career Byrne started his career playing rugby union for Bridgend Athletic RFC; and Tondu RFC, as a fu ...

(fullback),

Tommy Bowe Thomas John Bowe (born 22 February 1984) is an Irish former rugby union player from County Monaghan, Ireland. He played on the wing for Ulster, Ireland and the British & Irish Lions. In March 2012, after four years with Ospreys in Swansea, W ...

and

Shane Williams Shane Mark Williams, (born 26 February 1977) is a Welsh rugby union player most famous for his long and successful tenure as a wing for the Ospreys and the Wales national team. He also played scrum-half on occasion. Williams is the record t ...

(wings), Mike Phillips (scrum-half),

Alun Wyn Jones Alun Wyn Jones (born 19 September 1985) is a Welsh professional rugby union player who plays as a lock for the Ospreys and the Wales national team. He is the world's most-capped rugby union player. Jones also holds the records for the most ...

(lock) and Adam Jones (prop). One notable omission however, was Wales and Ospreys captain

Ryan Jones Ryan Paul Jones (born 13 March 1981) is a Wales former international rugby union player who played at number eight, blindside flanker or second row. He was involved in three Grand Slam wins, in 2005, as captain in 2008, and 2012. He is one ...

. The Ospreys announced the signing of former New Zealand

captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...

Jerry Collins Jerry Collins (4 November 1980 – 5 June 2015) was a Samoan – New Zealand rugby union player. He played for New Zealand, for whom he was capped 48 times, as well as for the Wellington Hurricanes in New Zealand, Toulon and Narbonne in the Rugb ...

on 9 May 2009. Collins had been a stalwart for the All Blacks, since 2004 but retired from international rugby in 2008. A 29–28 defeat by Biarritz on 10 April 2010 dashed the team's hopes of a first Heineken Cup semi-final appearance. A late Nicky Walker try in San Sebastien proved in vain. However, on 29 May 2010, the Ospreys won the

2009–10 Celtic League The 2009–10 Celtic League (known as the 2009–10 Magners League for sponsorship reasons) was the ninth season of the league now known as Pro12 and the fourth with Magners as title sponsor. The season began in September 2009 and ended with the G ...

by defeating Leinster in the final by 17–12 at the

RDS Arena RDS Arena is a multi-purpose sports stadium, owned by the Royal Dublin Society (RDS) and located in the Dublin suburb of Ballsbridge, Ireland. The arena was developed to host equestrian events, primarily the annual Dublin Horse Show, which wa ...

in Dublin. Following a wide-ranging review, Andrew Hore, previously elite performance director at the Ospreys, became on 26 April 2011 chief operations officer at the region. 2010–11 would not see the region reach the heights of the previous one. Despite winning all their home pool games in the Heineken Cup, a failure to win on the road proved costly, with Munster and Toulon progressing instead. Another win for Munster at

Thomond Park Thomond Park is a stadium in Limerick in the Irish province of Munster. The stadium is owned by the Irish Rugby Football Union and has Munster Rugby, Shannon RFC and UL Bohemian RFC as tenants. Limerick FC played home games in Thomond Park f ...

on 14 May 2011, ended the Ospreys Celtic League aspirations at the semi-final stage.

2012–2018

Former player Steve Tandy was appointed as new Ospreys head coach on 15 February 2012 replacing Sean Holley in the role, as Scott Johnson also departed to take up a coaching role with Scotland. Both Holley and Johnson's final game as part of the coaching setup at the Liberty Stadium had been a 36–5 away loss to Biarritz, which marked the end of a Heineken Cup campaign that saw them again fail to win on their travels. New coach Tandy enjoyed a successful start to his tenure, winning eight of his first ten matches as full-time Head Coach, including winning the

2011–12 Pro12 The 2011–12 Pro12 League (also known as the ''RaboDirect Pro12'' for sponsorship reasons) was the 11th season of the rugby union competition originally known as the Celtic League, the second with its current 12-team format, and also the first ...

following a 31–30 win over Leinster at the RDS, thanks to a late

try in his final match for the region 29–30 and Dan Biggar adding a difficult conversion for the win 31–30. Ospreys have reached 2 semi-finals in the subsequent 6 seasons, but not made the final. Following a poor start to the 2017–2018 season, Tandy was sacked by the Ospreys. Forwards coach Allen Clarke took over on an interim basis, before agreeing to a three year deal as head coach.

2018–

For the 2018–2019 season, along with new head coach Clarke,

Matt Sherratt Matt Sherratt is an English professional rugby union coach. He is currently the backs coach of Worcester Warriors who play in the Premiership Rugby competition. He had previously been backs coach at the Ospreys and Cardiff Blues. During the 2019 ...

joined the coaching staff, replacing Gruff Rees. The season also began with notable squad changes, with record points scorer

Dan Biggar Daniel Biggar (born 16 October 1989) is a Welsh rugby union player currently playing for French Top 14 side Toulon as a fly-half. A Wales international, Biggar has also twice been selected to tour with the British and Irish Lions. Early life an ...

departing for Northampton Saints, and stalwart Paul James retiring. The Ospreys were boosted with the signings of Welsh internationals

George North George Philip North (born 13 April 1992) is a Welsh professional rugby union player who plays for the Ospreys in the United Rugby Championship and the Wales national team. He has also represented the British & Irish Lions and currently has t ...

, Scott Williams, and Aled Davies. The season saw a modest improvement fot the Ospreys, winning 12 matches and losing 9, as well as beating west Wales rivals the Scarlets for a Champions Cup place.

Season records

Celtic League / Pro12 / Pro14 / URC

Celtic Cup

Heineken Cup / Rugby Champions Cup

Rugby Challenge Cup

Anglo-Welsh Cup

Home grounds

In their first two seasons, the Ospreys shared their home games between

St Helen's St Helens or St. Helen's may refer to: Places Australia * St Helens, Queensland (Fraser Coast Region), a locality in the Fraser Coast Region * St Helens, Queensland (Toowoomba Region), a locality in the Toowoomba Region * St Helens Beach, Queens ...

(home ground of Swansea RFC) and

(home ground of

). Since their third season in 2005–06, they have played at the purpose-built 20,000 seat Liberty Stadium in

Landore Landore ( cy, Glandŵr) is a district and community in Swansea, Wales. The district falls in the Landore council ward. A mainly residential area, it is located about 2.5 miles north of Swansea city centre. The north-easterly part of Landore i ...

, Swansea, which is shared with

Swansea City Swansea City Association Football Club (; cy, Clwb Pêl-droed Cymdeithas Dinas Abertawe) is a professional football club based in Swansea, Wales that plays in the Championship, the second tier of English football. Swansea have played their ho ...

. The Liberty Stadium, with double the capacity of St Helen's, has seen a capacity crowd for the matches against international tourists Australia 'A' team (1 November 2006) and against local rivals the

Scarlets The Scarlets () are one of the four professional Welsh rugby union teams and are based in Llanelli, Wales. Their home ground is the Parc y Scarlets stadium. They play in the United Rugby Championship and the European Rugby Champions Cup (which ...

. On 12 November 2010 the team played their first competitive fixture at the Brewery Field home ground of Bridgend Ravens in the

Anglo-Welsh Cup The Anglo-Welsh Cup (), was a cross-border rugby union knock-out cup competition that featured the 12 Premiership Rugby clubs and the four Welsh regions. It was a created as a replacement for the RFU Knockout Cup, which featured only English club ...

Kit suppliers

From their foundation to the 2013–14 season, the Ospreys kit suppliers were

Kooga BLK (initials for "Beyond Limits Known") is an Australian sporting goods manufacturing company which was established in 1999 in the city of Gold Coast in Queensland. The overall but now heavily transitioned company has origins as far back a ...

. Between the seasons 2014–2017, BLK supplied the Ospreys kits.

Canterbury Canterbury (, ) is a cathedral city and UNESCO World Heritage Site, situated in the heart of the City of Canterbury local government district of Kent, England. It lies on the River Stour. The Archbishop of Canterbury is the primate of the ...

supplied the kits for the 2018–2021 seasons. Starting for the 2021/22 season, the Ospreys would form a kit partnership with

Umbro Umbro is an English sports equipment manufacturer founded in 1924 in Wilmslow, Cheshire and based in Manchester. They specialise in football and rugby sportswear featuring their ''Double Diamond'' logo. Umbro products are marketed in over 1 ...

Current standings

Current squad

Development Squad

Management & Coaching staff

Management Coaching

Notable players & coaches

Welsh Internationals

The following players have represented Wales internationally and represented the Ospreys.

British & Irish Lions

The following players were selected for the

touring squads while contracted to the Ospreys: *

Brent Cockbain Brent John Cockbain (born 15 November 1974 in New South Wales, Australia) is a former rugby union player who won 24 caps for Wales. Club career Although born in Australia, and with his brother Matt Cockbain having played international rugby f ...

2005 File:2005 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: Hurricane Katrina in the Gulf of Mexico; the Funeral of Pope John Paul II is held in Vatican City; "Me at the zoo", the first video ever to be uploaded to YouTube; Eris was discovered in ...

Gavin Henson Gavin Lloyd Henson (born 1 February 1982) is a Welsh former professional rugby union player, who played as a fly-half, fullback and inside centre. Between 2000 and 2019 he played for Llanelli, Swansea RFC, the Ospreys, Saracens, Toulon, Ca ...

2009 File:2009 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: The vertical stabilizer of Air France Flight 447 is pulled out from the Atlantic Ocean; Barack Obama becomes the first African American to become President of the United States; Protests ...

* Adam Jones:

2013 File:2013 Events Collage V2.png, From left, clockwise: Edward Snowden becomes internationally famous for leaking classified NSA wiretapping information; Typhoon Haiyan kills over 6,000 in the Philippines and Southeast Asia; The Dhaka garment fa ...

2017 File:2017 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: The War Against ISIS at the Battle of Mosul (2016-2017); aftermath of the Manchester Arena bombing; The Solar eclipse of August 21, 2017 ("Great American Eclipse"); North Korea tests a se ...

2021 File:2021 collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: the James Webb Space Telescope was launched in 2021; Protesters in Yangon, Myanmar following the 2021 Myanmar coup d'état, coup d'état; A civil demonstration against the October–November 2021 ...

* Mike Phillips:

* James Hook:

Richard Hibbard Richard Hibbard (born 13 December 1983) is a Wales international rugby player currently playing for the Dragons. Hibbard was born in Neath, Wales. He’s married with 3 children. A hooker, he started playing rugby at age grade levels at clubs ...

* Ian Evans:

Justin Tipuric Justin Tipuric ( ; born 6 August 1989) is a Welsh international rugby union player who plays for Wales as an openside flanker. Early life Tipuric is of Croatian descent. He grew up in Trebanos after initially being born in the village of A ...

Rhys Webb Rhys Webb (born 9 December 1988) is a Welsh rugby union player who plays as a scrum-half for Ospreys. Born in Bridgend, he is a product of the Ospreys academy and played club rugby for Bridgend RFC and Aberavon RFC before breaking into the r ...

* Adam Beard:

Centurions

Players who have reached the 100 appearance mark for the Ospreys. The first numbers in brackets are the years they represented the Ospreys, while the second numbers in bold are the number of caps they received. Caps updated on 18 December 2022.

Notable non-Welsh internationals

Notable non-Welsh players who have international caps with a Tier One or Two nation and represented the Ospreys.

Former Coaches

* Lyn Jones (2003–2008) * Sean Holley (2008–2012) * Steve Tandy (2012–2018) * Allen Clarke (2018–2019) *

Carl Hogg Carl Hogg (born 5 July 1969) is a former Scotland international rugby union player. He is currently the Director of Academy and Development for Gloucester. Rugby Union career Amateur career Hogg was educated at St. Mary's School, Melrose an ...

(interim) (2019–2020)

Honours

* Celtic League/Pro12/ United Rugby Championship: **''Winners'': 2004–05, 2006–07, 2009–10, 2011–12 **''Welsh Shield Winners'': 2021-22 *

**''Winners'': 2007–08 **''Runners-up'': 2006–07

ERC Elite Awards

During the 10th anniversary season of the Heineken Cup, ERC, the tournament organisers, introduced the ERC Elite Awards to recognise players and teams who have made outstanding contributions to the tournament. Ospreys were awarded the ERC team award for playing 50 games. Ospreys players who have been awarded 50 tournament caps are: * Ian Gough * Adam Jones *

Duncan Jones Duncan Zowie Haywood Jones (born 30 May 1971) is a British film director, film producer and screenwriter. He is best known for directing the films ''Moon'' (2009), ''Source Code'' (2011), ''Warcraft'' (2016), and '' Mute'' (2018). For ''Moon'' ...

* Jonathan Thomas * Sonny Parker

Footnotes

External links

Official website

Aberavon RFC (official site)

Bridgend RFC (official site)

Neath RFC (official site)

Swansea RFC (official site)
{{Authority control Welsh rugby union teams Rugby union in Swansea Rugby union in Neath Port Talbot Rugby clubs established in 2003 United Rugby Championship teams