Having been bottom of the table and “embarrassed” going into Christmas, the Ospreys are now up to ninth after producing an “exceptional” display against Cardiff Rugby to complete a festive derby double.
They were down in 16th place in the URC, with just one win from their opening seven league games, after losing 26-10 at home to Munster a fortnight ago.
But, since then, they have bounced back in style by recording bonus point victories over both the Scarlets and Cardiff.
Their skipper for the 33-22 New Year’s Day defeat of Cardiff in front of a full house at Bridgend’s Brewery Field was hooker Sam Parry.
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He said: “If I am being honest, I think Munster embarrassed us, really.
“They taught us a lesson on a few things that we pride ourselves on. That really stung us. When I looked at the table and saw we were bottom, it really hurt.
“It was our first time back here since then and as a group we were determined to put those wrongs right.
“It was something we spoke about that we needed to put on a big performance because Cardiff have been going very well, but also just to back up from last week against the Scarlets. It was massive.
“I am glad we are climbing up the table now. We are not where we want to be just yet, so we will keep going and keep trying to get as high as we can.”
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Adding his thoughts, head coach Mark Jones said: “I am so pleased for the group.
“The boys have put an awful lot of work into the first half of the season and the wins column hasn’t always been as nice as we would like it to be.
“But I have always felt the performances have been progressive in the large part and that when we get our stuff right and execute really well we are a good side.
“When you play someone like Cardiff, who have amassed as many wins as they have, we knew we would have to be at our best to get anything out of the game and I thought we were exceptional. I just thought the full package was good.”
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The former Wales wing continued: “The derbies are so mentally and physically demanding and then you add in Christmas and New Year to it, there’s a lot of distractions and you could make a lot of excuses for not winning or not performing.
“Our players have done none of that. They have come into work when we have asked them to and done really well and got the most out of each day. It’s been tough because they have been tired and there’s been lots going on, for individuals and the collective, with everything that’s going on in the background as well.
“The way they have stayed focused and been so energized and excited to play with their team-mates, with the shirt, in front of our fans, that’s the bit that I have been so pleased with - how much they enjoy playing, which trumps everything really. It’s great.”
For Cardiff, the festive programme brought two defeats - to the Scarlets and Ospreys - and a narrow win over the Dragons. That has seen them drop down to fourth in the league table.
Their international centre Ben Thomas said: “We all love playing the Christmas derbies and, ultimately, one from three is not good enough for us.
“So we will look back hard at this and use it as a bit of a catalyst to get better for the second half of the season.”
On the loss to the Ospreys, he said: “It was a frustrating day for us. They were better than us in every facet of the game. They were on top in breakdown, attack, defence - every aspect.
“You give a team that much dominance at the contact area, it’s going to be tough to get your game going.
“So there will be an awful lot for us to look back on.
“But sometimes you need these games, you need a bit of a reality check and it will refocus us for the second half of the season. We will work hard to get better.
“We had three pretty intense derbies and sometimes after a loss like that you can get a bit emotional and start chasing the wrong things, so it will be good for us all to have a couple of days to reflect and then come back in and get ready to improve.”
In the other Welsh derby on New Year’s Day, the Dragons continued their resurgence as they claimed an emphatic 28-5 bonus point victory over the Scarlets at Rodney Parade.
That’s now three wins from their last four matches in all competitions for the Gwent region, with the Player of the Match award going to try-scoring hooker Oli Burrows who said: “It was a big effort from 1 to 23.
“The momentum we’ve had the last couple of weeks, particularly at home, we carried that through into the new year and it’s just a hell of a way to start the year really.
“It’s probably been coming since the start of the season. It was a case of breaking that duck, getting that monkey off our back and, once you get that win, it’s amazing what a little bit of momentum does for you.
“We’ve not been a million miles off and one or two things have started to click. We have got a brilliant group here.”
Co-captain Angus O’Brien added: “It’s massive and it’s just testament to the work we are doing. We had some tough results at the start of the season, but a lot of the performances have been there, we just haven’t played 80 minutes.
“Getting that win a few weeks back against Lyon, you could see the belief with a big win against Connacht. We had a narrow loss last week at Cardiff, but we showed the confidence to come back.”
On the victory over the Scarlets, during which he converted all four tries, full-back O’Brien said: “It wasn’t perfect. The first half was a tight game, but in that second half, we were foot on the throat, we were clinical and we came away with five points, so we are delighted.”
He added: “The fans are massive. The way we play at Rodney Parade, they are a focal part of that, the energy they drive for us as a team, the way they support us, it's amazing. So, happy new year to them.”
