As Dan Biggar prepares for his 200th appearance for the region, this Saturday afternoon at the Liberty Stadium, the Ospreys have paid tribute to “the ultimate competitor”.
The youngster player ever to reach 100 and 200 appearances for the Ospreys, double PRO12 winner Biggar is also the record points scorer at the region, with 2029 to date.
His 1448 in the PRO12 is second only to Dan Parks, who is 134 ahead, while he has 497 points in the Heineken/Champions Cup, making him the 10th highest scorer in the competition’s history, with a further 78 points in this season’s Challenge Cup taking his European tally to 575 overall.
Meanwhile, his 295 points in 56 test matches is the sixth highest by a Wales player.
Reflecting on the impact Biggar had made over the last nine years, Steve Tandy paid tribute to the former Gorseinon and Swansea RFC player.
“He is the ultimate competitor and it’s an amazing achievement for Dan, particularly when you look how young he still is.” said Tandy, who was on the field alongside Biggar when he scored his first Ospreys points, a try in a 24-20 loss to Connacht on the final day of the 2007/08 season.
“He’s a proud and passionate Osprey who has been fantastic for us, week in, week out, over the last nine years. You look at his level of consistency, the number of games he has played and his incredible points scoring record, and it tells you all you need to know about his appetite for work. He leaves nothing to chance; it’s all about the preparation he puts in.
“Anyone who knows him will tell you about his commitment, the hard work day in, day out, to ensure he is the very best he can be. He is never satisfied and he expects the same from everyone around him. Nobody plays as many games, for the Ospreys and Wales, as he has by the age of 27, or scores the points they have, by chance. His character probably makes him easy to knock from the outside but he just shrugs criticism off, he is someone who thrives on adversity with his will to win
“It’s fair to say that he’s not always had the credit that he does deserves outside of our environment, but in recent seasons it’s as if the rest of the world has finally seen what Biggs’ brings to any team he’s involved with.
“It’s a huge achievement to play 200 times for any team, particularly your home region, and Dan should be incredibly proud to be on a such an exclusive list. It’s going to be a few years until anyone else joins the 200 club.”
Ospreys Chairman, Roger Blyth, echoed Tandy’s comments, saying:
“Dan is someone who has come through our pathway, via the community club game, and since quickly graduating to the senior team at such a young age has been a constant at the Ospreys for the last nine years.
“To look at the games he has played and points he has scored, and still to be only 27, his achievements are quite remarkable and he is to be applauded. His consistency and sheer, bloody-minded, will to win has dragged the Ospreys through plenty of sticky situations, most notably that final against Leinster in 2012 and that kick.
“He has many years ahead of him so the prospect of where he could finish up in terms of points and games is incredible. I know that Dan is incredibly passionate about being an Osprey and he and his family should be immensely proud of his achievements.”
