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The Ospreys, formerly the Neath–Swansea Ospreys is one of the four professional rugby union teams from Wales. They compete in the United Rugby Championship and the European Rugby Champions Cup. The team formed as a result of Neath RFC and Swansea RFC combining to create a new merged entity, as part of the new regional structure of Welsh rugby, that began in 2003. They are also affiliated with a number of local semi-professional and amateur clubs, including Welsh Premier Division sides Aberavon RFC, Bridgend Ravens, and original founding clubs Neath and Swansea. The regional area represented by the team has widely become known for rugby purposes as 'Ospreylia'.
Rugby union in Wales is considered a large part of Welsh national culture. Rugby union is thought to have reached Wales in the 1850s, with the national body, the Welsh Rugby Union (WRU) being formed in 1881. Wales are considered to be one of the most successful national sides in Rugby Union, having won the most Six Nations Championships, as well as having reached 3 World Cup semi finals in 1987, 2011 and 2019, having finished 3rd in the inaugural competition and having finished 4th in 2011 in a repeat of the first third place play-off. The Welsh team of the 1970s is considered to be arguably the greatest national team of all time, prompting many experts in the game to suggest that had the Rugby World Cup existed during this period, Wales would be amongst the list of World Cup winners. As of November 2021, they are ranked 8th in the world.
Gavin Lloyd Henson is a Welsh former professional rugby union player, who played as a fly-half, fullback and inside centre.
Justin Warren Marshall is a New Zealand former rugby union player. He played 81 games for the New Zealand All Blacks between 1995 and 2005.
James William Hook is a retired Welsh rugby union player. Hook has won 81 caps for Wales and is Wales' fifth highest all-time points scorer. Most often playing as a fly-half, Hook is known as a utility player, and has also played as a centre, wing and fullback.
The 2006–07 Celtic League was the sixth Celtic League season and the first with Magners as title sponsor. The season commenced on 1 September and was completed on 12 May.
Aled Brew is a former Wales international rugby union player who played as a winger. He made his debut for the Wales national rugby union team against Ireland in the 2007 Six Nations Championship. In his career, as well as playing for Biarritz Olympique and Bath Rugby, he is one of only a handful of players to have played for all four top-level regional teams in Wales.
The 2007–08 Celtic League was the seventh Celtic League season and the second with Magners as title sponsor. The season began on 31 August 2007 and finished on the weekend beginning 10 May 2008. Some disruption to fixtures occurred as a result of the 2007 Rugby World Cup, which took place during September and October 2007.
Liam Davies is a Welsh rugby union footballer. A scrum-half, Davies began his professional rugby career with the Llanelli Scarlets, and made his league debut for the Scarlets while still in the region's development squad, playing against Cardiff Blues on 14 September 2005. He made a further nine appearances in the 2005–06 season, scoring a try against Glasgow Warriors on 16 October 2005. In March 2006, Davies was promoted to the Scarlets' first team squad, signing on a professional development contract.
The 2008–09 Celtic League was the eighth Celtic League season and the third with Magners as title sponsor. The season began in September 2008 and ended in May 2009. Ten teams played each other on a home-and-away basis, with teams earning four points for a win, and a bonus point for scoring four or more tries in a match. Losing teams also earned a bonus point if they lost by seven points or less.
Rhys Webb is a Welsh rugby union player who plays as a scrum-half for Ospreys. Born in Bridgend, he is a product of the Ospreys academy and played club rugby for Bridgend RFC and Aberavon RFC before breaking into the regional side in 2008. He played for the Ospreys for 10 years before moving to French club Toulon in 2018, but terminated his contract with them in 2020 and agreed a return to the Ospreys; however, he was unable to join the Ospreys immediately and signed for Bath for the remainder of the 2019–20 season before returning to the Ospreys.
Michael William Vincent Collins is a professional rugby union player who plays as centre. He is a former captain of the Otago Boys' High School 1st XV and a former New Zealand Schools representative. He has turned down offers from the NRL franchise the Melbourne Storm and ITM Cup Premiership side Waikato to play for Otago. Collins most recently played for the Ospreys in the United Rugby Championship.
Tom Grabham is a Welsh former professional rugby union player who played as a wing or scrum-half. Prior to retirement, Grabham played for the Scarlets and the Ospreys.
Owen Williams is a Welsh professional rugby union player who plays as a fly-half for the Ospreys. He has represented Wales and Wales U20.
Dan Baker is a Wales international rugby union player. A back row forward, he plays for Ystradgynlais RFC having previously played for the Dragons, Stade Montois, Ospreys and Aberavon RFC
Owen Watkin is a Wales international rugby union player who plays for Ospreys regional team as a centre.
Joe Hawkins is a Welsh international rugby union player who primarily plays centre for Exeter Chiefs in the Premiership. Hawkins began his professional career with the Ospreys, before signing for Exeter. He has also represented Wales at international level, having made his test debut against Australia during the 2022 Autumn Internationals.
Luke Morgan is a Welsh rugby union player who plays for the Ospreys as a wing. Born in Bridgend, Wales, he was a Wales under-20 and Wales Sevens international.
Rhys Davies is a Welsh international rugby union player, who currently plays for Ospreys. He plays as a lock.
Joe Roberts is a Welsh rugby union player, currently playing for United Rugby Championship side Scarlets as a centre. He has represented Wales, making his debut on 12 August 2023 against England.
