Perfect time to pick up points against depleted Ospreys

OSPREYS v CONNACHT:WARREN GATLAND'S brief is to retain the Six Nations title any way he sees fit but unlike the Irish management the Kiwi has opted not to release those sitting on the bench in recent games. As a result, James Hook is the most notable absentee for the Ospreys who have been decimated by the dropping of this fixture into mid-February.

Connacht couldn’t have picked a better time to visit Swansea. Colm Rigney comes in at number eight for the injured Mike McCarthy, allowing captain John Muldoon revert to his preferred position on the blindside flank. He produced a workmanlike and try-scoring display for Ireland A, at eight, in last week’s thrashing of Scotland. David Gannon comes onto the replacements bench.

With so many frontline internationals away, Connacht seem in good shape, besides Johnny O’Connor’s absence. They remain four points adrift of Cardiff, whose focus is on Europe, and catching them looks like their most accessible avenue into a play-off for Heineken Cup qualification.

The Ospreys beat Connacht 16-3 in Galway in the opening round but that was with Hook, Lee Byrne, Tommy Bowe, Ryan Jones and Ian Gough who are all resting this weekend.

The game plan will be simple: apply pressure to get Ian Keatley into range and hope he delivers. Basically, make a nuisance of themselves.

OSPREYS: G Owen; K Phillips, S Parker, J Spratt, J Vaughton; D Biggar, J Nutbrown; P James (capt), R Hibbard, C Griffiths; F Levi, J Thomas; T Smith, S Tandy, F Tiatia. Replacements: E Shervington, R Bevington, A Lloyd, M Holah, R Webb, A Beck, D Bishop.

CONNACHT: G Duffy; F Carr, N Ta’auso, K Matthews, L Bibo; I Keatley, F Murphy; B Wilkinson, S Cronin, R Morris; A Browne, A Farley; J Muldoon (capt), R Ofisa, C Rigney. Replacements: A Flavin, R Loughney, M Swift, D Gannon, K Campbell, A Dunne, T Nathan.

Referee: P Allan (SRU).

Verdict: Connacht win.