In what many regard as one of the defining matches in the brief history of the Welsh Region, Ospreys Coach Lyn Jones knows there is no margin for error if his side are to finally reach their goal of breaking into the quarter-finals.
“It’s a huge game for us and it’s a big game for Gloucester, too – that’s the nature of this tournament,” he said. “We have played ourselves into a very good position and we’ll be very disappointed if we can’t take the next step from here.
“It’s quite simple: we’ve got two Pool games left to play in the Heineken Cup and we’ve got to win them both. It sounds simple but it’s going to be a lot tougher than that.
“We need to be as well prepared as we’ve ever been against the threats and dangers that Gloucester have to offer. We all appreciate the size of this game, although we realise that beating Gloucester doesn’t mean we go through as we’ve still got to beat Bourgoin.
“We are very confident and looking forward to the challenge. Every year in the Heineken Cup is huge for us and this tournament is why we get involved with professional rugby.
“There is no magic formula for success at the elite level and we’ve got to understand what needs to be done when Gloucester come down. We must work hard and then we may get what we want from the game.
“We were devastated to have lost at Gloucester. Our preparation was good and we looked in control for periods of the game but we failed on the night. We’ve certainly improved as a unit and a team since then and we are really excited by the challenge that lies ahead.
And former All Blacks scrum half Justin Marshall, who has the experience of playing at the highest level in both hemispheres, added: “I see the Heineken Cup as a better competition than the Super 14.
“I feel the competition is a tougher tournament to win and that is motivating for me as a competitive person. The reason I came to the Ospreys was because I thought they had the ambition, drive and squad to win the Heineken Cup and it’s what’s keeping me going. To win the Heineken Cup is what is keeping me in the game at the moment.
“Now it’s the biggest game in Europe and if we don’t win against Gloucester then we will struggle to qualify.
“However, we are going to be playing the best team in England and one of the top teams in Europe right now, and if we want to progress in the tournament on big occasions like this we need to know as a squad that we can go out and win these games.
“But on its day this team is capable of beating any team, and that’s a good feeling. What we’ve got to do is learn how to beat them and there is a young talent in the squad that is learning by experience – even at 33 I am still learning.
“There’s a lot of criticism of the fact that we haven’t picked up bonus points here and there but we don’t go out there to play negatively, we play to win. Gloucester is the hurdle that we want to get over and win, and if we win by a bonus point then great.
“If we can win then we look at Bourgoin, but at the moment it’s irrelevant to us – the only game we are focusing on is Gloucester because that steers our destiny.”
