Ospreys Begin European Campaign at Black Lion With New Faces and a Heavy Travel Load

The Ospreys Black Lion Challenge Cup opener takes the Welsh club to the Avchala Stadium in Tbilisi on Saturday, with kick-off at 13:00 BST. It is the Ospreys’ first European fixture of the season and continues a demanding early schedule that has already taken them from South Africa to Newport.

A squad in motion

Six players make their first starts of the season against Black Lion, and 19-year-old full-back Lewis Edwards will make his Ospreys debut. Edwards represented Wales U20 at the World Rugby U20 Championship, where his kicking drew notice.

Owen Watkin, the Wales centre, captains the side. The starting line-up also includes scrum-half Reuben Morgan-Williams, hooker Lewis Lloyd, tight-head prop Ben Warren, lock Lewis Jones and open-side flanker Gwilym Evans. Three Australian players feature in the squad: centre Lalakai Foketi, fly-half Lawson Creighton and lock Ryan Smith. French official Benoit Rousselet will referee the match.

Travel and rotation

The Ospreys opened their United Rugby Championship campaign with two matches in South Africa, facing the Sharks in Durban and the Lions in Johannesburg. They then beat the Dragons 38-31 at Rodney Parade after a six-day turnaround. The trip to Tbilisi is the fourth fixture in a sequence that will total about 10,000 air miles.

Across those four matches, the Ospreys have used 34 starters. Assistant coach Richard Kelly said the changes are not about sacrificing results. Every selected team, he said, is picked to win. He pointed to the 22 guaranteed games plus European knockouts as the reason a squad must be rotated, and said players outside the first-choice XV need opportunities to be ready when called upon.

Black Lion’s record warns against complacency

Black Lion have shown they can trouble European opponents. Last season they beat Montauban and led Montpellier 13-0 at half-time before losing 24-13. In 2023 they beat the Scarlets 23-7 in Llanelli.

Kelly expects a physical test in Tbilisi. He said Black Lion rely on their set piece and driving line-out, and that the challenge posed by their pack will be huge. The Ospreys will need to meet that forward threat while integrating new starters and managing the latest leg of a season that has already demanded significant travel.