Preview: Dragons v Ospreys

Dragons coach Paul Turner has announced his side for their upcoming Magners League derby match against the Ospreys on Saturday.

Dragons head coach Paul Turner has announced his side for their upcoming Magners League derby match against the Ospreys on Saturday.

Following their strong performances for the region against Connacht, Both Toby Faletau and Andrew Coombs have been retained for this match.

Elsewhere in the line-up and Luke Charteris is named at lock while Jason Tovey will look to continue his good run of form at number ten.

Ospreys coach Jonathan Humphreys meanwhile is able to recall Wales internationals Lee Byrne, James Hook, Mike Phillips, Ryan Jones, Jonathan Thomas and Adam Jones for the clash in Wales.

Ireland wing and Six Nations player of the tournament Tommy Bowe is also named on a starter while Jerry Collins and Marty Holah form a strong back-row alongside number eight Jones.

“This weekend's game is the start of a busy period that will shape the season for us. We've got at least seven games to go over as many weeks, but we want to extend that, with as many as four additional games to come if we can progress through the knockout stages of both competitions,” said Humpreys.

“In particular, the next three weeks promise to be a real test, with Welsh derbies against the Dragons and Scarlets followed by away matches against Biarritz, Ulster and Leinster.

“We know what we have to do during this period, it's a real test, but we're all excited about it. This is what rugby is about at this level, and if you have the ambitions and aspirations that we have here at the Ospreys, to be competing and involved in competitions at the business end, it's a pressure that you have to learn how to cope with.

“We've got our international players back with has increased our options, and it's important that the players coming back are able to switch straight back in to Ospreys mode. They've been away from our environment for a while, but we've got a good atmosphere here, a close knit group and they are enjoying being back in the family, so there are no concerns there. They realise they've got to be focussed, switched on and ready for action because there's no room for slip-ups over the next few weeks.

“The Dragons will be a real tough test for us at Rodney Parade, they always are. You've only got to look at their results there so far this season, and the quality of teams who've left there defeated, most notably Munster recently. It's a difficult place to go and get a result, they will be up for it and their crowd will do their best to make life hard for us, but we have to thrive on that, we need to ensure that we are professional, on top of our game, and focussed on the job in hand.”

Form: The last five clashes between the two regions in all competitions have all been won by the home side on the day, whilst Ospreys only previous victory on Dragons soil was 27-13 on 8 May 2007. The Dragons have won just one of their last five Magners League matches: 31-22 at home to Munster on 6 March, however Dragons have lost only once at Rodney Parade in the Magners League in the past year: 9-14 to Scarlets on New Year's Eve. Ospreys five game undefeated run in the Magners League ended in Edinburgh last time out, but the Welshmen's only away win in the competition since September was 21-14 at Scarlets on Boxing Day.

The teams:

Dragons: 15 Martyn Thomas, 14 Will Harries, 13 Matthew Watkins, 12 Ashley Smith, 11 Aled Brew, 10 Jason Tovey, 9 Wayne Evans, 8 Toby Faletau, 7 Gavin Thomas, 6 Danny Lydiate, 5 Luke Charteris, 4 Rob Sidoli, 3 Pat Palmer, 2 Tom Willis (capt), 1 Hugh Gustafson.
Replacements: 16 Steve Jones, 17 Ben Castle, 18 Andrew Coombs, 19 Hoani Macdonald, 20 Tom Riley, 21 James Arlidge, 22 James Leadbeater.

Ospreys: 15 Lee Byrne, 14 Tommy Bowe, 13 Andrew Bishop, 12 James Hook, 11 Nikki Walker, 10 Dan Biggar, 9 Mike Phillips, 8 Ryan Jones (capt), 7 Marty Holah, 6 Jerry Collins, 5 Ian Evans, 4 Jonathan Thomas, 3 Adam Jones, 2 Huw Bennett, 1 Paul James.
Replacements: 16 Richard Hibbard, 17 Ryan Bevington, 18 Ian Gough, 19 Filo Tiatia, 20 Jamie Nutbrown, 21 Sonny Parker, 22 Gareth Owen.

Date: Saturday, March 27
Kick-off: 18:30
Venue: Rodney Parade
Referee: Nigel Owens (WRU)
Assistant Referees: Sean Brickell (WRU), David Jones (WRU)
TMO: Tony Rowlands (WRU)