Welsh fly-half Dan Biggar scored all of Ospreys’ points as they beat Bordeaux-Begles in their European Champions Cup Pool B game on Saturday night.
After a slow first half hour with both sides converting two penalties each, Ospreys captain Alun Wyn Jones was yellow carded after coming in from the side during a rampant Bordeaux maul.
With Jones sin-binned, the French side then took advantage, finding numbers out wide on the hosts’ 22 metre line. Bordeaux centre Felix Le Bourhis then finished off to secure the first try at a rainy Liberty Stadium.
Just before half-time, Dan Biggar kicked two successful penalties to get the Ospreys just one point behind Rafael Ibanez’s squad.
After the interval, Bordeaux winger Jean-Baptiste Dubie clotheslined Biggar after the number 10 had kicked it. It was an awfully dangerous foul from the French speedster, and was correctly worthy of a straight red card.
Bordeaux were down to 14 men with more than half an hour to go. So, with the numerical advantage in their favour, Ospreys pushed on and scored in the 51st minute with Biggar giving the Top14 side some payback, dabbing down from the blindside off of a ruck on the visitors’ try-line.
Bordeaux converted a penalty after somehow dominating proceedings in the last twenty minutes, despite being one man short. However, they couldn’t cross the Ospreys line, and with just a few minutes remaining and patience wearing thin, prop Jean-Baptiste Poux was sin-binned to put the visitors down to 13 men.
Ospreys went on to secure a 19-16 win to gain a second place spot in Pool B of the Champions Cup. Exeter Chiefs defeated Clermont 31-14 on Saturday to deny the Welsh club a top spot.
Ospreys face Bordeaux again next week at the Stade Cheban-Delmas.
