Wales scrum-half Rhys Webb has revealed why he has been burning the midnight oil to help the National Health Service during the coronavirus crisis. Webb has been working regular night shifts for Vale of Glamorgan-based company TJ Morgan, who make PPE (personal protective equipment) masks for the NHS. Rugby has come to a stop during the global pandemic and the 31-year-old British and Irish Lions star has explained the motive to work on a production line.

The Ospreys’ training base at Llandarcy Academy of Sport is to be transformed into a field hospital in a bid to deal with the coronavirus pandemic. Work has already started at Llandarcy – which is part of the Neath Port Talbot College Group of Colleges – and will be completed in the next three to four weeks. The beds would be used for COVID-19 patients and other patients who need medical care, but they will be nursed in separate areas.

It was Shane Williams’ final match for the Ospreys and confirmation again of his genius for timing. There were only two minutes left of the 2013 RaboDirect Pro12 final – a classic which is being re-shown by S4C on Saturday at 5.45pm – when Williams chose to shape the match to suit his own purposes. Leinster were leading 30-24 at the RDS Showground in Dublin and hanging on to a lead they felt certain would bring them the title.

Mike Ruddock insists Toby Booth convinced the Ospreys players he was the man to take the region out of its desperate slump. The current Harlequins assistant coach will take in charge at the Liberty Stadium for the start of the 2020/21 season after their long search for a replacement to sacked Allen Clarke came to an end. Ruddock – hired as performance director earlier this season – has revealed that senior Ospreys players were involved in the assessment process and gave their thumbs-up that Booth was the man for the job.

As Wales gear up for their Six Nations opener on Saturday, Peter Jackson of The Rugby Paper pays tribute to the last player in the tournament to reach scoring perfection – James Hook, who will retire from rugby at the end of the season. James Hook did something a long time ago which no British or Irish player has done in the Six Nations since. He went through the card, ticking all four boxes in the scoring book: try, conversion, penalty, drop goal.

The Ospreys are searching for a young, charismatic coach to take over and have added Dwayne Peel to a hit list of options. The 38-year-old former Wales scrum-half – currently coaching at Ulster – fits the age profile the region are seeking in a new talisman to revive their fortunes. The Ospreys have been impressed by the impact Brad Mooar has had at the Scarlets – on and off the field – in just a few months and want a coach in a similar mould to both lift a downtrodden squad and re-connect with a disillusioned fan base.

Alun Wyn Jones can defy logic and figure in the next World Cup, according to his new Wales forwards coach. But Jonathan Humphreys – one of the right-hand men to new Wales chief Wayne Pivac – insists Jones will also come under pressure from the next generation of Wales stars. At the age of 34, the 134-times capped Wales international is approaching the end of a glittering career, but former Wales skipper Humphreys is confident he can coax a few more years from the Ospreys legend’s tank.

Wales scrum-half Aled Davies could be on his was from the Ospreys to join English giants Bath. The West Country club have expressed an interest in signing the 27-year-old who is out of contract at the end of the season and has a big decision to make over his future. Davies falls short of the 60 caps required to move outside of Wales and remain eligible for national selection, having only won 20 caps.

Fancy the Ospreys to actually win a game when they cost Saracens in the European Champions Cup on Saturday afternoon? No? Well, you’re probably not alone. But Peter Jackson has a reminder that history often shapes the most unpredictable outcomes. Saracens will look at the dishevelled state of their next European opponent and suspect that the usual New Year ambush awaits them in bandit country. No Champions Cup mission to Ospreys would be the same without one, at least not for the holders.

As the Ospreys prepare for their ultimate test on Saturday – a clash against mighty Saracens in the European Champions Cup, Harri Morgan has been imagining his own tough examination and the only man in Wales who might be up to the task . . . the returning Alun Wyn Jones. Complete this sentence – Alun Wyn Jones is a great leader because…. As I racked Brain:\Rugby\Wales\2006-Present for the top answer, I realised that there was one game that would certainly be the Ospreys lock’s go to response should he be faced with a competency based interview (unlikely) and the inevitable ‘give us an example of a time you have shown strong leadership?’ question.

Dean Ryan reckons the Dragons have unearthed a new “superstar” in wing Rio Dyer after their derby victory over the Ospreys. Adam Warren’s late try sealed a remarkable 25-18 Guinness PRO14 win at Rodney Parade, but was Dyer – a youngster first thrust forward as an 18-year-old by former coach Bernard Jackman – who caught the eye. Head coach Ryan saw his team led 10-8 at half-time after prop Leon Brown responded to a try by his Wales team-mate George North.

Wales scrum-half Rhys Webb will rejoin the Ospreys next season in a deal that will pave the way for a return to international rugby. The British and Irish Lions star is returning to Wales after Toulon agreed to release him from the final year of his contract “for family reasons”. Webb, 31, joined Toulon in 2018 with the move ruling him out of Test selection and the 2019 World Cup in Japan.