ST HELEN’S: ‘This one truly is our own’: Ospreys ready to put a marker down in their first game at the rebuilt ground

The Ospreys have called the Swansea.com Stadium and the Brewery Field home in recent seasons. Head coach Mark Jones says St Helen’s is different: “This one truly is our own.”

The Ospreys play the Dragons there on Saturday (7pm), in their first game at the rebuilt ground.

“We get an opportunity now to put a bit of a marker down around what that looks like for people when they come here to watch the Ospreys, what are they likely to see and what experience both on and off the field,” Jones said.

‘Taken aback’: what the Ospreys players found at St Helen’s this week

The squad trained at the ground on Tuesday and again on Thursday. Co-captain Sam Parry says the players were “taken aback a little bit” when they first turned up.

“It’s really impressive the work that’s gone on behind the scenes to make this happen,” he said. “You can see the difference from Tuesday to Thursday.”

A fair few of the squad were at Swansea RFC’s first game back against Ebbw Vale, Parry said, and the ground has changed day to day since.

“There’s workmen everywhere, everyone’s just all hands to the pump. It’s quite inspiring to be around, really.”

Jones has seen it too. “It has been incredible in three months; you can’t believe it,” he said. “We were down here Tuesday and came back again today. There’s been progression in two days.”

‘A few false dawns’: why the move to St Helen’s means so much

Jones says the players have been “quietly excited” about the move, “because there’s been a few false dawns with it in the past, just due to the nature of all the politics that’s going on”.

Swansea Council is putting £7.6m into the rebuild, and the Ospreys are investing £2.6m and taking a 50-year lease.

“The importance of it for the Ospreys is massive,” Jones said. He said schools, Swansea RFC and the university would all benefit: “There’s so many people going to benefit from the stadium, not just the Ospreys.”

The terrace ‘right under’ the pitch: Parry and Jones expect a top-class atmosphere

The pitch has been moved closer to the terrace. Parry played school and college rugby at St Helen’s and trained there during Covid, and he says the ground feels completely different.

“The way it’s been set up is brilliant, to be honest. The way the pitch has moved and stuff, everything is a lot closer and on top of you,” he said. “I think the atmosphere is going to be top class here.”

Jones enjoyed his time at the Swansea.com Stadium, but says crowds could get lost in the size of it.

“Hopefully what we get here now is increased crowd, but also that noise and volume just ramped up because it does make a big difference to team when you can really feel that energy coming from the supporters.”

The new 4G pitch: ‘they haven’t felt any effects of it’

The squad has trained twice on the new artificial pitch. Jones says players can feel “a little bit stiff” after 4G surfaces, but not after this one.

“The players have said that they haven’t felt any effects of it, which normally tells you it’s a good surface,” he said.

Even if the weather turns on Saturday, Jones says it should be a good game to watch. “The ball’s not going to be muddy, it’ll be damp, but it’ll be clean.”

Temporary changing rooms, and the Dragons in the Swansea RFC clubhouse

The permanent changing rooms will come with the main stand in a later phase, so the Ospreys have gone temporary for now. That leaves the Swansea RFC clubhouse for the opposition to prepare in.

“We want teams to come here and find it tough on the field, but we want to make sure we provide good facilities for teams as well,” Jones said.

He says the building work on the stands will go on “for the next year or two”. The roof over the terrace has already been pushed back to a later phase.

“We’re a real honest group, we’re not worried about those types of things, boys don’t worry about that, they’re just happy to have something of their own, which we’re going to embrace.”

Parry on the Founders Wall: ‘a stake in the ground’

The players who run out on Saturday will have their names on the Founders Wall, a permanent installation at the redeveloped St Helen’s.

“I think it’s massive,” Parry said. “Throughout the season, we will definitely touch on the history that’s gone on at this ground previously.”

“It will be a big motivation this week for the boys, who have been lucky enough to be selected to probably put a stake in the ground to be part of the history of St Helens moving forward.”

All four Wales call-ups start. Jones says they want to “finish off here with the Osprey shirt on and do a really good job for us before they put the feathers on their chest”.

Jones on St Helen’s as a Scarlet: ‘I’m hoping to win more games here as an Osprey’

Jones played at St Helen’s for Llanelli at the start of his career, in tough Christmas derbies against Swansea.

“I can’t remember having a lot of success there, to be honest with you,” he said. “I can remember Moriarty, Scott Gibbs, Arwel Thomas, even Henson coming on the scene at the start of his career as well, so we had some tough Christmas derbies down here.”

Brothers Paul and Richard Moriarty both played for Swansea. Paul’s son, Ross, is on the Ospreys bench on Saturday.

“It was intimidating enough when the pitch was off the terrace previously, but now the fact it’s right under it, it’s going to really add,” Jones said.

“I’m hoping to win more games here as an Osprey than I did as a Scarlet, maybe playing against the Whites, because it was a tough place to come.”

“It’s a really good old-fashioned rugby ground and St Helen’s, if you’ve been here before, you can tell it’s St Helen’s, it hasn’t lost that identity,” he said. Cardiff visit a week after the Dragons, on Saturday, 31 October (7.45pm).