The Ospreys will be without captain Justin Tipuric for the final few weeks of the season as they will be playing in the Rugby Champions Cup next season.

Toby Booth’s side are currently four points behind Cardiff with two games in hand. That means an apocalyptic showdown between the two teams on the final day of the season on 22 April could put the Welsh shield and promotion to the top flight of European rugby on the line. to the thread

Unfortunately, an injury picked up in the first half defeat by Saracens in the Champions Cup final means Ospreys will not have their influential squad open for games against Edinburgh on 15 April, followed by Cardiff. However, Booth says he doesn’t think the injury is serious enough to put the defender in doubt for any of this summer’s World Cup training camps.

“Justin is obviously not going to film,” he said at the Wednesday press conference for the “Doomsday” screening. “He left early in that game. He had surgery on his leg, which is quite common. But that doesn’t count towards the end of the campaign.

“Other than that, I think everyone is healthy. Stephen Myler is about to return to training. Matt Prothero returned to training this week. Much the same, some people recover quickly.

“Usually, the operation takes a minimum of eight weeks. I don’t know the actual deadline. I know it went well. It’s pretty routine so I don’t think it’s a problem for Wales to go to camp.”

“It’s a bit serious for him to leave the field when he did that. This is the joy of artificial fields. You get caught and you get that grass and other parts.

“You know when he comes out, that’s when you know he’s really serious. It’s one of those things, but something routine that we can get around. It’s just that time will beat us this season.”

The loss of Tipuric was a blow to hopes of retaining the Welsh shield when the Ospreys snatched the trophy from the Scarlets’ apparent clutches last season. This secured them a place in the Champions Cup, where they beat French champions Montpellier home and away, and beat English champions Leicester Tigers at Welford Road.

Despite the excellent campaign, Booth admitted that there was some nervousness among the regional coaches given the difficult situation in which the Welsh game found itself. Financial uncertainty cast a heavy shadow over the game for a long time. A new six-year funding model has been adopted, but the reality is that players will continue to leave the club as contracts are extended and wages and budgets shrink in coming years.

“I think it’s definitely going to be a different scenario,” he said, sitting next to Cardiff manager Dai Young and Dragons manager Dai Flanagan. “We are all worried. I don’t mind speaking for the guys, I think we’re all a little worried about what the future holds in terms of strength in depth and in terms of competition.

“You have to have balance: be careful what you say. I think the big challenge we have to face is to see what that future will be like and how you can continue to be competitive.

“After Saracens, I say officially that we are probably better designed for rugby cup than rugby league in terms of availability and power of deep vision.

“We will accept what happens. Positioning of European competitions, wherever you are you can see how well the Welsh teams have done in cup competitions, whatever they may be. We will definitely enjoy it and do our best.”

Source: Wales Online