15 Richard Fussell

14 Tommy Bowe

13 Andrew Bishop

12 Ashley Beck

11 Shane Williams

10 Dan Biggar

9 Rhys Webb

1 Duncan Jones

2 Richard Hibbard

3 Adam Jones

4 Ryan Jones

5 Jonathan Thomas

6 Tom Smith (Capt)

7 Justin Tipuric

8 Joe Bearman

Replacements:

16 Huw Bennett

17 Ryan Bevington

18 Aaron Jarvis

19 Ian Gough

20 George Stowers

21 Tom Isaacs

22 Matthew Morgan

23 Sonny Parker

The following players were unavailable because of international duty:

Tom Habberfield, Will Price and Tom Prydie are with Wales Sevens

The following players were not considered because of injury:

James Goode – Back

Kahn Fotuali’i – Rib

Ben John – Groin

Alun Wyn Jones – Foot

Gareth Owen – ACL

Nikki Walker – ACL

Paul James – Thumb

Ospreys Director of Coaching, Scott Johnson, commented:

“This stage of the tournament is always a crucial time, with the double headers pivotal to how the pool works out. We’ve got two tough games back to back against the English champions, but we’ve got our fate in our own hands. How far we go in terms of reaching the knockout stages is down to us, nobody else.

“Saracens are a big, strong team with a dominant pack so we know where it’s going to be won or lost. Selection has been tough given the form of the guys who played in the last two league games, but we think we’ve gone with a 23 that will be up for the job. Make no mistake about it, everyone of them will have a big part to play.

"Tom continues as captain because we feel he’s earned the right over the last few weeks. He’s led by example, he’s performed well, and with Justin having been away with Wales he’s really taken the opportunity and impressed as a captain. We’ve got a number of experienced leaders and captains in the squad but Tom has the armband on merit.

“It’s going to be tough, it’s going to be a real battle, and we know what we’ve got to do there. We want to bring something back to the Liberty from this game, so that we’ve got everything to play for when they come to ours next Friday. We’ve got a proud home record and with our fans here to really get behind us like they did in the Munster match, it promises to be a big night for Ospreys Rugby.”

Forthcoming fixtures

Fri 16 Dec – Ospreys v Saracens – Liberty Stadium – Heineken Cup – 8.00pm

Mon 26 Dec – Scarlets v Ospreys – Parc Y Scarlets – RaboDirect PRO12 – 2.05pm

Sun 1 Jan – Ospreys v Cardiff Blues – Liberty Stadium – RaboDirect PRO12 – 6.30pm

Fri 6 Jan – Newport Gwent Dragons v Ospreys – Rodney Parade – RaboDirect PRO12 – 7.05pm

The Irish international scrumhalf will be registered to play for the English champions in the Aviva Premiership and Heineken Cup.

Mark McCall, Director of Rugby, said: “We are fortunate to have a pair of outstanding young scrumhalves in Ben Spencer and Luke Baldwin, but the injuries to Richard Wigglesworth and Neil de Kock have left us exposed in this pivotal position. We are delighted to have secured the services of Peter Stringer, an experienced player of proven quality.”

Stringer, capped 98 times for his country, said: “Everybody in Irish rugby can see there is something very special happening at Saracens, and I can’t wait to be part of it.”

Sale Sharks: 15.Rob Miller, 14.Will Addison, 13.Johnny Leota, 12.Sam Tuitupou (capt.), 11.Mark Cueto, 10.Nick Macleod, 9.Will Cliff, 1.Alasdair Dickinson, 2.Tommy Taylor, 3.Henry Thomas, 4.Fraser McKenzie, 5.James Gaskell, 6.Richie Vernon. 7.David Seymour,  8.Andy Powell,

Replacements 16.Marc Jones, 17.Vadim Cobilas, 18.Tony Buckley, 19.Kearnan Myall, 20.Mark Easter, 21.Cillian Willis, 22.Tasesa Lavea, 23.Tom Brady

Sharks’ Executive Director of Sport Steve Diamond said, “It’s a long time ago since I left Saracens. They have created a super franchise. They are now going away from home and winning at Gloucester ,so we know that we are up against a top side on Sunday.

“ In the end it’s all about our performance this weekend.  If we get it right in our set piece and defence then we stand a chance of getting something out of the game. They are one of the top super clubs in England right now and if you get anything from them away from home, then you are doing well.”

15 Alex Goode
14 David Strettle
13 Adam Powell
12 Brad Barritt
11 Joe Maddock
10 Charlie Hodgson
9 Ben Spencer
1 Rhys Gill
2 Schalk Brits
3 Carlos Nieto
4 Steve Borthwick ©
5 Mouritz Botha
6 Justin Melck
7 Andy Saull
8 Jackson Wray
16 Harry Allen
17 Mako Vunipola
18 Petrus du Plessis
19 George Kruis
20 Jamie Bache
21 Jean-Baptiste Bruzulier
22 Duncan Taylor
23 Marcus Watson

Player-of-the-tournament Luke Fielden was in exceptional form scoring one try and creating two more for the Falcons who fought back after trailing 21-14 midway through the second half.

It was Falcons who got out of the blocks quickest, with Fielden making a half-break before Alex Tait was held up over the line.

But the Sarries’ defence didn’t hold out for long as back-row Redford Pennycook burst over the line put Newcastle in front, Joel Hodgson adding the extras.

Jackson Wray was then isolated and despite the suspicion of a knock on, Tait pounced on the ball and raced in from the 22, Hodgson again converting for a 14-0 lead.

But the mercurial Hodgson’s defence then let him down as Sarries hit back immediately through James Short, skipping past his feeble attempted tackle, Marcus Watson adding the extras.

And Ben Ransom took advantage of another missed tackle from Hodgson to stroll over, Watson converting again to tie things up on the stroke of half-time.

Saracens’ pace was clearly becoming too much for a powerful Newcastle side and Watson broke through the Falcons defensive line to give the reigning champions the lead for the first time.

But with Newcastle looking dead on their feet, Fielden was fastest on to Tait’s  grubber through to get the Falcons back to within two, his missed conversion against the post keeping Sarries in front.

And the comeback continued with Tait finishing off a sensational length-of-the-field effort collecting the final inside pass from Aaron Myers to put Newcastle back in front.

Saracens’ reign was ended as Chris Pilgrim finished off more fantastic work by Fielden, whose conversion put Falcons ten points clear.

Newcastle booked their place in the finals by dispatching Wasps and Harlequins, Fielden grabbing a hat-trick in their opening 38-7 win over the Adams Park outfit.

That was Wasps’ second game of the evening as Quins kicked things off with a 19-0 win in the opener, Ross Chisholm scoring the pick of the tries for the hosts.

Those results set up a tantalising decider between the hosts and Newcastle, and after Quins looked to be on their way through taking a 12-0 lead, Fielden and co roared back, the winger scoring the winning try with the last play of the game for a 17-12 victory.

It was altogether more straightforward for Sarries who strolled to a 38-7 win over Bath, Jean-Baptiste Bruzulier scoring twice in their opener.

And after a tough opening half, two tries from Short proved the difference for Sarries as they saw off Sale 21-5 to book their place in back-to-back finals.

In a dead rubber to finish the group games Bath got the better of Sale 28-12, Tom Heathcote helping himself to two tries.

In team news ahead of the tournament, Jackson Wray captains the squad that also includes Rodd Penney, James Short, Marcus Watson along with Scott Spurling and Jean-Baptiste Bruzulier who both made such an impact two weeks ago. Will Fraser, Tom Jubb, Matt Hankin, Henry Staff and Ben Ransom are also selected. Dave Vincent, a familiar name after he pulled on a Saracens shirt in the tournament last year, is also included in the squad as a guest from Bedford Blues.

Saracens squad

1. Jackson Wray (Captain)
2. Scott Spurling
3. Will Fraser
4. Tom Jubb
5. Henry Staff
6. Rodd Penney
7. Jean-Baptiste Bruzulier
8. Marcus Watson
9. Matt Hankin
10. James Short
11. Ben Ransom
12. Dave Vincent

The Saracens juggernaut showed no signs of suffering summer blues as the defending champions booked their place at the final of the J.P. Morgan Asset Management Premiership 7s at the Stoop in a fortnight where they will be joined by London Wasps.ames Short was the star of the show running in five tries in two drubbings of Wasps and Northampton before Scott Spurling’s last-gasp effort earned a third win in a cracker against Gloucester. That late try was enough to end Gloucester’s hopes of making the final on August 5, an under-par performance in their second game against Wasps proving decisive. But for former England U20s winger Short the evening was just more proof that Sarries are going to be a force to be reckoned with again this season. “We came in after winning this event last year, and obviously the Premiership final as well, so every tournament we enter, we want to win,” said Short. “I’ve really been looking forward to it, and it was a great performance for us. “Pace is a massive aid to my game but at Sarries the key is work rate, we pride ourselves on it and I think that was on show again. “Now we have the Stoop coming up, and we’ll be looking to win that.” Hosts Northampton made a poor start to the tournament when they threw away a half-time lead against a Mark Woodrow inspired Gloucester and fell to a 26-14 defeat. Scores from Anders Mogensen and Scott Armstrong had the home side in front but Gloucester responded with four tries of their own from Woodrow, Gareth Evans twice and Fred Burdon. Saracens then opened up their defence with a convincing 22-14 win against London rivals Wasps, Short and Chris Wyles scoring two tries apiece. Wasps bounced back from that defeat in style as they put Gloucester to the sword in a five-try 31-5 victory. Scores from Will Robinson, Joseph Tariperiajua and Charlie Ingalls saw the London side take a comfortable lead before late tries from Mark Billings and Jonah Holmes added a touch of gloss to the scoreline. Sarries’ try-scoring form continued into their second game as Short really cut loose, running in a hattrick of tries in a 29-7 win against a demoralised Northampton. Then in the encounter of the night a last-gasp score by Saracens hooker Spurling saw the defending champions seal their passage through to the final at the expense of Gloucester. In a quite enthralling game Saracens made it three wins from three as they emerged 28-22 victors against a Cherry and White side who pushed them all the way. In the final game of the round a fine Tariperiajua try inspired Wasps to an impressive 19-7 win against hosts Northampton that confirmed their place in the final alongside Saracens. The London side knew that to go through they had to beat a Saints outfit that were only playing for pride and they bounced back from an early Tom Collins score to emerge comfortable victors. Tickets for every round of the J.P. Morgan Asset Management Premiership Rugby 7s Series are available through Ticketmaster /www.ticketmaster.co.uk http:// www.ticketmaster.co.uk/or by calling 0844 847 2492

Sarries will be looking to defend the title they won last season and have named their squad for the event.

Surgery over the summer means Nils Mordt is unable to play in the tournament, but his Sevens knowledge will be put to good use as he has been named the coach of the team.

Jackson Wray is named captain of the squad that also includes Rodd Penney, Chris Wyles, James Short and Ben Ransom. They are joined by a mixture of senior and junior Academy players including hooker Scott Spurling, back row Matt Hankin, scrum half Jean-Baptiste Bruzulier and second row Tom Jubb.

Wing Marcus Watson, back row Will Fraser and wing Josh Bassett, playing as a guest from Bedford Blues, complete the squad.

Saracens Squad for JP Morgan Asset Management Premiership Rugby Sevens

1. Jackson Wray (captain)
2. Scott Spurling
3. Will Fraser
4 Tom Jubb
5. Matt Hankin
6. Rodd Penney
7. Jean – Baptiste Bruzulier
8. Marcus Watson
9. Chris Wyles
10. James Short
11. Ben Ransom
12. Josh Bassett (Bedford Blues)

Smit said: “I am delighted to have signed for a club widely renowned for the ferocious work ethic and spirit on the field and for the unique way it treats people off the field. It is becoming a very special rugby club, combining a cast-iron commitment to develop young English players with a clear South African flavour. I’m looking forward to rejoining former teammates like Deon Carstens and Brad Barritt, and also to working with players like Jamie George, last year’s England under-20 hooker.”

Mark McCall, Director of Rugby, said: “We are absolutely thrilled to have signed one of the most prominent and admired players in world rugby. John is an outstanding leader and hooker, and I am certain he, Roxy and their children will all thrive in our environment.”

Smit played his first Springbok game in 2000 at the age of 22, when South Africa beat Canada 51–18 at Basil Kenyon Stadium in East London. Between October 2003 and June 2007, Smit played in a record breaking 46 consecutive Test matches for South Africa, though it was not until 2004, when he was made captain of the squad by then new coach Jake White, he became a regular member of the starting XV.

Smit’s record-breaking sequence of appearances came to an end with South Africa’s first match of the 2007 Tri Nations, against Australia, when he suffered an injury that prevented him taking any further part in the tournament. He recovered from his injury in time to take part in the 2007 Rugby World Cup, in which he started in 6 out of 7 South African matches, and in which his leadership qualities came to the fore, as his calm under pressure and inspirational captaincy saw South Africa win the William Web Ellis Trophy for the second time.

When Peter de Villiers was appointed as the new South Africa coach in 2008, one of his first decisions was to re-appoint Smit as the captain of the national side. Smit led South Africa in their opening game of the 2008 Tri Nations, against New Zealand in Wellington, but suffered a groin injury when he was lifted and dumped by New Zealand lock Brad Thorn after the whistle had blown: Thorn received a one-match suspension, but Smit missed the rest of the tournament, being replaced as captain by veteran Springbok lock, Victor Matfield.

Smit in the Springbok change kit, coming out for a pre-match warm-up.

In 2009, Smit led South Africa to a series victory against the visiting British and Irish Lions, and followed this by leading his team to success in the 2009 Tri Nations, in which South Africa won five of their six matches, including a clean sweep of three wins against New Zealand.

In the first test against New Zealand, Smit equalled the record of 59 Tests as captain held by Australia’s George Gregan and England’s Will Carling. The following week, he became the most-capped captain in international rugby history.

As of September 2009, Smit is one of South Africa’s most successful captains ever; having led the Springboks to victory in 46 of the 64 games he captained: a win percentage of 72%. He has won more Tests as captain than any other Springbok has played as captain.

On 23 August 2010, he played his 100th Test – only the 15th player ever, and second South African to reach that milestone.