Ryan Jones May Not Captain Osprey After All

Sean Holley, Osprey's Coach, says that there is doubt that Ryan Jonas will be skippering the team, even through he said that he is still a candidate, even a strong candidate. However, the team wants to relieve some of the pressure on him, after he suffered a concussion that wasn't diagnosed until six days after the match, in the team's win against the USA Eagles. He had replaced Ireland's Stephen Ferris for the Lions.

Holley quotes factors like International players being unavailable for sections of the season will be part of the decision as the Ospreys make a final decision on who their Captain will be. The coach said of Ryan Jonas, after the preseason game at Gloucester, where they won 22-16, that Jonas was looking fresh and invigorated, and that he wanted to get out and play some rugby. He also said that they need to hear from Ryan if he is up to the task of taking on two jobs this year, and that they didn't want to put that burden on him. He said that he had between four to six candidates for the position, and that they would be deciding who it would be next week.

Holley was counting Jones as part of those candidates saying that although there would be some value in making a captain out of someone not involved in test Rugby, but that Ryan is still a major candidate, having led the team well, and that it would depend upon how heavy his load was this year. Jones is a double Grand Slam winner, and has been on the international field since 2005. Saturday it was former New Zealand player Marty Holah who was in charge at Gloucester, but Ryan Jones took over from him at half-time, and of course they ended winning the game.