It’s been just five days since the Ospreys caused an almighty shock to triumph over Sale Sharks 23-15 in the last-16 of the EPCR Challenge Cup at the Brewery Field.
In what Booth would call a ‘cauldron’ like atmosphere in Bridgend, the Ospreys would be victorious in Europe for the first time in a knockout match.
Next up comes another stern test for the Welsh region in the shape of Gallagher Premiership Gloucester. Victorious in a captivating battle against TOP14 side Castres on home soil, the English side showed their quality to triumph 30-25 against their French rivals.
The cup tie will be an eagerly anticipated affair between two sides with an opportunity to progress in the competition, paired on paper in the easier half of the draw.
The reward for the victor of the clash – a home tie against Irish province Connacht or physical encounter with the Italians of Benetton on the first weekend of May and a realistic chance of making the competition final on Friday, May 24 at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
Both sides come into the match in good form with Gloucester, after a slow start to the season, triumphant in seven out of their last eight games in all competitions.
The English side have had the upper hand over the years in the Anglo-Welsh fixture with five wins to the Ospreys three, the last coming in 2018 – a 43-20 victory at Kingsolm.
Much has changed since that day, and lying ninth in the Gallagher Premiership, with only four wins from 14 encounters, Europe has been a welcome distraction for head coach George Skivington this season.
The Cherry & Whites began their campaign in Pool 3 of the Challenge Cup back in early December with a close-fought 15-10 victory over newcomers Black Lion. A result ending a run of six successive defeats domestically.
The victory spurred somewhat of a turnaround in Skivington’s side’s season with further triumphs over Frech sides Clermont and Castres and an away day to savour in Edinburgh seeing Gloucester top their pool to earn the right to a home knockout tie in both the last-16 and quarter-finals stages of the competition.
The Ospreys run to the last-eight began with an entertaining 43-34 win over Benetton to inflict revenge on the Italians for their United Rugby Championship defeat in the previous week. Welsh international hooker, Dewi Lake scoring four times on the day as an astonishing ten tries would be shared between the two sides.
In the only blip of a stellar campaign, round 2 saw Booth’s side travel to the south of France to face Montpellier. It would be a trip to forget as the Ospreys would be put to the sword with the Top 14 side claiming a 38-5 win on home soil.
Showing resilience, the Welsh region would bounce back to revive their European campaign in the following game a 25-3 win over Perpignan at the Swansea.com Stadium.
With qualification back in their own hands, Booth’s side would face a tricky trip to face the Lions in South Africa in their final pool game.
Without several first-teamers, a young Ospreys team would taste victory in Johannesburg, their first on South African soil. An impressive second-half showing the catalyst to a dramatic comeback 38-28 win. A result that would secure a home tie in the round of 16, where they defeated Sale Sharks in Bridgend last week.
“We will just take one game at a time,” said head coach Toby Booth ahead of the tie.
With a chance to make history, however, Ospreys fans will be dreaming of what could be an explosive end to a captivating campaign.
Gloucester vs Ospreys will be shown live on S4C and TNT Sports on Friday, April 12, kick-off 8pm.
[Lead image: Ospreys Rugby]
