The next two weekends are massive for rugby in West Wales. Ospreys and Scarlets will clash in the URC this weekend, with both firmly in the Race to the Eight, before facing down a week later in a European knockout fixture at the Swansea.com Stadium.
The next two weeks represent two opportunities at history, so we asked some legends of the game to give their take on the roots of this deep-seated rivalry.
Scott Gibbs on the rivalry:
“There’s a huge rivalry. I guess in many ways it’s a compliment. It’s a deep, rich vein of rivalry that goes back decades and decades. I know as a rookie, playing for Swansea, it was engrained in me that you hated the team over the Loughor Bridge. I guess you have to live and be part of what that means on a matchday. I debuted as a rookie with Neath against Llanelli. I kind of had a baptism of what that meant. I think it exponentially ratches up when you play for the Whites playing against Llanelli in Stradey Park.
We use words like rivalry and hatred but in another language it's a deep respect for the opposition. Because you knew how good the Llanelli teams of the past were! You had to be at your very best to go there and get a result. I know I won a few games at Stradey Park, but I can count on both hands how many times I got my arse kicked!
“My debut for Neath is my most significant memory. I say that because I understood what playing against Llanelli meant. The late, great Ray Gravell was commentating that day. I was fortunate to put a man of the match performance three games into my Neath journey, and that was sort of endorsed by Ray. That meant a lot to me. It gave me the opportunity to understand the enormity of playing at Stradey Park, the history of Stradey Park and what the opposition was all about.
Describe the rivalry in a few words:
“The rivalry is ferocious. There's a lot of deep-rooted anger and hatred but more so a healthy respect of two great teams going against each other.”
Arwel Thomas on the rivalry:
“They were always great games. We had two good sides: Llanelli and Swansea were two strong sides back then. I was grateful to be a part of it. When I was growing up it was what people would talk about. I played for the Scarlets for half a season and just the passion from the supporters down there is unrivalled really.
I remember the Ninian Park Cup final. Gibbsy said ‘it’s going to be a walk in the park, men against boys.’ It was the rebel season for Swansea at the time and we really didn’t know how we were going to do. I remember it went ok for myself. After what Gibbsy said, we all had to try and back it a little bit. That was my lasting memory of Llanelli Swansea matches.
I just hope it can keep going. I was proud to watch it, really proud and lucky to be involved in those games.
Predictions for the double header:
I’d like to think that there’s big crowds watching. The passion is there and it will matter to the boys that are playing. Home and away advantage will play a huge part as well.
Describe the rivalry in a few words:
We have to think how lucky we are. The rivalry is priceless, and we have to use it to our advantage. A lot of places can’t generate that. You’re either one or the other, and I just think it’s priceless for Welsh rugby.”
Colin Charvis on the rivalry:
“Well, I was adopted into Swansea. When I came over the bridge here to play in 1995, the first thing was to learn how to pronounce Llanelli. And then just the realisation how deep, strong, bitter, any other words you can use, the rivalry was.
Some of our players would rather have played Swansea Llanelli games than play for Wales. It was very intense. For me, I’d never experienced that kind of rivalry for any club I’d played for before. It was a pleasure to play in those games, to see great battles Finau v Gibbs, Quinnell v Moriarty, it was just fantastic.
I can remember the cup final in 1999. We won that game. It was in Ninian Park in Cardiff. It was a great day: the sun was out, we won, we were obviously very happy. But typically they beat us in the final a year later. Those scars, those wounds, were very deep within each team. The rivalry will continue for a very long time.”
Predictions for the double header:
“I still live in Swansea: I’d get into a lot of trouble if I didn’t put my money on the Ospreys! I think nowadays you could look at the teams and it would be more about which team looks best on paper. Back in the day, it was all about whichever team was most hungry and that’s what those rivalries were all about.”
Rob Jones on the rivalry:
They were always the biggest games of the season. Home and away. Swansea was the place I wanted to play in front of the home crowd. But in some ways, I enjoyed going down to Stradey Park. It was quite hostile in terms of the rivalry and crowds. Both sets of fans and players enjoyed those games.
When I first came to Swansea as an 18-year-old schoolboy, playing against the likes of Ray Gravell and players of that ilk was special to me.
We played a game down at Swansea, myself and Rupert Moon were the scrum halves competing against each other. We were both going for the league at the time and the crowd was incredible. The ground was packed, full to the rafters, people were finding every other vantage point to watch what was potentially a decider in terms of the league. That was a special occasion. We won that game, thankfully.
As an occasion, not just for us but for supporters as well, that remains as one of my best memories of this fantastic rivalry.
Predictions for the double header:
The good thing is that both sides are playing well at the moment, getting results and playing a good brand of rugby. I think that’s been developed over the last 18 months or so, which is good for Welsh rugby as well.
As someone who played my rugby in Swansea, the Ospreys are very much my home region. But I coached down in Llanelli, so Scarlets is very much in my heart as well. If it works out well and both sides play well I think Ospreys may have the edge at the moment. But there are probably a lot of Scarlets supporters, coaches and players who think differently.
Describe the rivalry in a few words:
Incredibly intense, committed, but I think people don’t realise the friendliness of the individuals who played against each other. There’s 80 minutes of hard work and graft but afterwards we’re all proud of the clubs we play for and very friendly as well.
Make sure you're there to experience the next chapter of this historic rivalry: buy your tickets now.
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