Ospreys meet Edinburgh at the Liberty Stadium, on Friday at 19:35, as third meets tenth with both teams looking to potentially climb two places higher in the Guinness PRO12 table. What’s at stake? If Ospreys secure their third straight victory they could move top of the table providing both Munster and Leinster lose. Meanwhile, Edinburgh can move up to eighth if they get the four points and other results go their way. Team news (Ospreys): Ospreys have gone for Sam Davies over Wales’ first-choice fly-half Dan Biggar as they both return from the November internationals. Biggar is on the bench while flanker Justin Tipuric and lock Alun Wyn Jones return from Test duty to start. Team news (Edinburgh): Edinburgh Rugby’s acting head coach Duncan Hodge has made seven changes to his line-up with scrum-half Sam Hidalgo-Clyne making his second league start. In the backs, Duncan Weir returns from injury and Will Helu makes his first appearance of the season. Scotland’s Allan Dell and Grant Gilchrist return and start with Stuart McInally promoted from the bench. Talking points: Ospreys will look to make it two out of two against Scottish opposition having beaten Glasgow last Friday but head coach Steve Tandy admitted picking the right XV wasn’t easy. He said: “Selection hasn’t been easy as we’ve done okay over the last month but we’ve gone with a mix that we think will get the job done on the night while having an eye on some of the challenges ahead of us, with a couple of European games and a derby against the Scarlets, the next PRO12 game. “This is a big game for us. We’ve had a pretty decent start to the season and are sitting at the right end of the table but it’s the start of a busy period with some important games coming up. “We want to keep the momentum going and to do that we’ve got to get a good performance in on Friday night.” Key Battle: Weir returns to the starting XV for the first time since fracturing his jaw against Munster in round four and will need to get up to speed quickly against young Sam Davies. The Wales fly-half made his first international appearance this autumn before kicking a match-winning drop goal against Japan in just his second match. Key stat: Edinburgh’s only victory outside of Scotland in the Championship since September 2015 was by a single point on a trip to Newport Gwent Dragons in March. Lions contenders: Biggar will be looking to force his way into Warren Gatland’s plans for a Lions fly-half spot when he comes on while Weir has plenty of points to prove on his return from injury. Alun Wyn Jones and Justin Tipuric have little left to prove as experienced international campaigners. Did you know? Ospreys have won their last four Guinness PRO12 games at Liberty Stadium since Ulster beat them there in round 22 of last season. Ospreys: Dan Evans, Keelan Giles, Ashley Beck, Josh Matavesi, Dafydd Howells, Sam Davies, Brendon Leonard, Nicky Smith, Sam Parry, Ma’afu Fia, Rory Thornton, Alun Wyn Jones, James King, Justin Tipuric, Dan Baker. Replacements: Scott Baldwin, Paul James, Dmitri Arhip, Lloyd Ashley, Sam Underhill, Tom Habberfield, Dan Biggar, Kieron Fonotia. Top Points Scorer: Sam Davies 51 Top Try Scorer: Ben John 5 Edingburgh: Blair Kinghorn, Damien Hoyland, Chris Dean, Junior Rasolea, Will Helu, Duncan Weir, Sam Hidalgo-Clyne, Allan Dell, Stuart McInally, Murray McCallum, Ben Toolis, Grant Gilchrist, Magnus Bradbury, Jamie Ritchie, Nasi Manu. Replacements: Neil Cochrane, Kyle Whyte, Felipe Arregui, Lewis Carmichael, Viliame Mata, Nathan Fowles, Jason Tovey, Glenn Bryce. Top Points Scorer: Duncan Weir 36 Top Try Scorer: Mike Allen 3 TV: Live on BBC Wales Referee: Dudley Phillips (IRFU, 65th competition game) Assistant Referees: Sean Gallagher (IRFU), Sean Brickell (WRU) TMO: Kevin Beggs (IRFU) Guinness PRO12 Final 2017 Ticket Information: Fans can save up to 20% on selected tickets, and prices start at just €30 adults and €5 child, and be booked via www.ticketmaster.ie. For further information visit http://www.pro12rugby.com/final
