Booth's 'sense of pride' as Ospreys lose in play-offs

Head coach Toby Booth said Ospreys gave it their champion arsenic they were beaten 23-7 by defending champions Munster successful nan United Rugby Championship play-offs.

Injury-hit Ospreys were nan first Welsh region successful six years to scope nan play-offs and had done truthful against nan odds.

They were concisely connected level position astatine Thomond Park aft Keelan Giles' early effort but could not make nan astir of their scrum dominance.

“My overriding emotion is of pridefulness for nan team,” Booth said.

“We tin bespeak connected really we get amended but correct now a consciousness of pride, and sadness actually, because to opportunity goodbye to immoderate members of that group - Nicky Smith successful peculiar - is an affectional infinitesimal for nan team.

“But we've fixed it our best.”

Booth’s broadside had unexpectedly reached nan play-off 4th finals pursuing a last time triumph complete Cardiff and results elsewhere saw them leap from 11th to eighth.

Ospreys, who had besides reached this season’s European Challenge Cup past 8 only to suffer astatine Gloucester, had gone into nan crippled successful Limerick very overmuch nan underdogs.

Simon Zebo and Niall Scannell scored first-half tries earlier nan footwear of Jack Crowley sealed triumph for nan four-time champions, who will look either Glasgow Warriors aliases Stormers for a spot successful nan Grand Final.

“The champion squad won, let's beryllium honorable astir it, and they were very difficult,” Booth told S4C’s Y Clwb Rygbi aft Opsreys’ conclusion astatine Thomond Park.

“We had a fewer cardinal moments that we astir apt needed to separator to make scoreboard pressure, make it a spot much nervy for them, but we stuck astatine it.

“We said astir it being amended than our acquisition successful nan changing room immoderate nan consequence post-Gloucester and it surely was that because we surely swung for nan fence.

“We surely gave it our all, mislaid a fewer cardinal moments erstwhile it really mattered and nan 2nd half was difficult because we couldn’t get retired of our half.

“We competed difficult – a fewer subject elements wherever you complete compete – but that’s portion of nan maturation of nan team.”

The crippled marked Wales prop Smith’s last quality for Ospreys up of his move to Leicester Tigers pinch team-mates George North and Alex Cuthbert besides departing.

Booth is assured Ospreys are good equipped to woody pinch nan ongoing challenges facing Welsh rugby.

“We had a batch of departures past twelvemonth and nan budgets are still going backwards truthful it’s difficult,” Booth added.

“But that scheme of processing our ain from time 1 erstwhile I sewage present 4 seasons agone and bits and pieces intends we’re astir apt sewage successful beforehand of nan curve a small bit.

“The youngsters and nan squad will beryllium amended for that acquisition and each nan acquisition this year.

“They said very positively astir immoderate our experiences this twelvemonth but what’s underneath it each is an aerial of disappointment and wanting to spell further again.

“Ultimately it’s astir it’s astir information and wanting to support going and arsenic we telephone it, uncovering a way.

“We’ll proceed to effort and find a measurement and put our champion ft guardant for sure.”