Ospreys’ Strong Fight Secures Draw Against Cardiff

Ospreys’ strong performance under new head coach Mark Jones continued as they secured a hard-fought 13-13 draw against Cardiff, despite being down to 14 men for most of the match. Jones, who had claimed a dramatic win in his first game in charge against Scarlets, saw his side show great resilience in this tense derby. Cardiff entered the break leading 5-3 after Evan Lloyd’s try but Ospreys delivered a determined second-half performance.

Despite James Fender’s red card for a dangerous tackle on Dan Thomas, Ospreys remained undeterred. Fly-half Dan Edwards scored 13 points, including a try and Ospreys dominated the scrum, controlling the set-piece. They came agonizingly close to a win with Lewis Lloyd’s and Morgan Morse’s tries ruled out in the final moments. Cardiff, who had not beaten Ospreys at home since 2007 will be disappointed to have failed to secure the victory after leading at halftime.

Indiscipline cost them as yellow cards for Teddy Williams and Rhys Litterick left Cardiff with only 14 players for much of the second half. Ospreys capitalized on the numerical advantage with Edwards’ try early in the second half giving them a brief lead. The game featured several scrappy moments with Ospreys failing to make the most of their scrum dominance in the first half.

Cardiff’s Matt Sherratt acknowledged that his team’s penalty concessions allowed the game to slip away while Ospreys’ Mark Jones praised his side’s fight after the red card but expressed frustration at not converting late opportunities. Both teams settled for the draw with Ospreys earning a well-deserved point despite their numerical disadvantage.