Munster’s good form should see them through

Ospreys v Munster
Saturday, Liberty Stadium, 2.40
Sky Sports 1

Professional sport rarely accommodates sentiment during a match but there'll be quite a few rugby supporters hoping that Munster's Donnacha Ryan emerges unscathed from any game time he's likely to get from the bench.

The Ireland international secondrow has been out for a year as a result of a complex and slow healing foot injury, one that required dedication and perseverance in terms of rehabilitation. He’ll be keen to see some action but just how much will probably be dictated by the nature of the contest.

The Ospreys and Munster are at opposite ends of the spectrum form wise with the Welsh side having won just one of five Guinness Pro12 matches since the start of the year, albeit that their most recent result was a 9-9 draw against Leinster.

Munster in contrast have climbed to the top of the table with four successive victories, the last of which was a fine 22-10 win over the Glasgow Warriors in Cork. Head coach Anthony Foley makes three changes to the run-on team from that match. [CROSSHEAD]Final alteration [/CROSSHEAD]Dave Kilcoyne returns at loosehead while Dave O'Callaghan is named in the backrow alongside Sean Dougall and CJ Stander. The final alteration sees Felix Jones, released from the Irish squad, play in the slightly unfamiliar position of wing, as JJ Hanrahan retains the fullback position.

Ospreys coach Steve Tandy admitted: "This is a huge game for us having dropped out of the play-off spots last week. We've had some disappointments the last few games but I think week on week there have been clear improvements, to the extent that we should have had more from the Leinster match and were all disappointed."

The Ospreys' need is greater but Munster's consistency of performance, allied to outstanding contributions from players such as Keith Earls, might be good enough to squeeze out a victory.

OSPREYS: D Evans; T Grabham, J Sprat, J Matavesi, H Dirksen; S Davies, T Habberfield; R Bevington, S Otten, A Jarvis; L Peers, T Ardron; J King, J Tipuric (capt), D Baker. Replacements: M Dwyer, N Smith, D Arhip, R Thornton, O Cracknell, M Allen, M Roberts, B John.
MUNSTER: JJ Hanrahan; F Jones, K Earls, D Hurley (capt), R O'Mahony; I Keatley, D Williams; D Kilcoyne, E Guinazu, BJ Botha; Donncha O'Callaghan, B Holland; Dave O'Callaghan, S Dougall, CJ Stander. Replacements: K O'Byrne, J Ryan, S Archer, D Ryan, J O'Donoghue, N Cronin, A Smith, A Conway.
Referee: Marius Mitrea (Italy).