Scarlets Coach Peel Anticipates Strong Ospreys Response Following Booth’s Departure

Scarlets head coach Dwayne Peel anticipates a challenging and emotionally charged encounter with Ospreys in the upcoming United Rugby Championship (URC) west Wales derby on Saturday, 21 December, at the Swansea.com Stadium, with kick-off at 17:15 GMT. Coverage will be available via Scrum V on BBC Two Wales and commentary on BBC Radio Wales. The Ospreys confirmed head coach Toby Booth’s departure on Tuesday, following their unprecedented European defeat against Montpellier. Despite this, Peel believes the team will be invigorated by the situation. Peel stated, “Derbies bring a different type of intensity and emotion,” adding, “The news with Toby at the start of the week can work both ways. As you have seen many times when this happens you can have a bit of a bounce or reaction of some sort.” He further commented on Ospreys’ roster, saying, “If you look at their squad of competitive international players, they will be up for this, so I am expecting it to be a tight battle.” Booth had served as Ospreys’ head coach since 2020, with his departure originally scheduled for the conclusion of the current season. His accomplishments include leading the team to the URC Welsh Shield in both the 2021-22 and 2023-24 seasons, as well as guiding Ospreys to the Challenge Cup quarter-finals and the URC play-offs during the previous season. “It is never nice when a coach leaves his job like that and it is not for me to comment on any decision,” Peel remarked, adding, “I just know he has done a good job there.” In September, Ospreys had announced that former Wales wing Mark Jones would succeed Booth. Jones has now transitioned from his defence coach position to assume the head coach role six months ahead of schedule. Peel is well-acquainted with Jones, as they progressed through the Llanelli youth system to play for Scarlets and later became teammates for Wales. Peel commented on Jones’s anticipated contribution, stating, “What he will bring is energy and enthusiasm and will get them emotionally ready for this game.” He continued, “Knowing him as well as I have over the last 30 years he will definitely bring those elements to their team and I wish him all the best in the role.” Peel concluded by saying, “He is a rugby man through and through and I am sure he will do a good job there.” Peel’s immediate objective is to secure Scarlets’ inaugural away league victory against the Ospreys. “We have talked about that this week,” Peel revealed, adding, “We have been trying to understand why that is the case and working out what we are going to do differently to get over the line this week.” This upcoming fixture is set to be the last west Wales derby held at the Swansea.com Stadium, as Ospreys are scheduled to relocate to St Helen’s next season. “There is always an emotion to these games and a lot riding on it in terms of local bragging rights,” Peel commented. He reflected on previous encounters, stating, “There have been some tight games and others where we would not have been as good as we would have liked in Swansea.” He concluded, “This year we are determined to go there and do well.”