The Ospreys will use the pain of successive quarter-final defeats in the Heineken Cup as motivation tomorrow when they look to reach the last four for the first time, and earn a semi-final at the Millennium Stadium, at the expense of Biarritz in San Sebastián.
The Ospreys have only once defeated a French club away from home in the Heineken Cup, Bourgoin two years ago, and while they are in the quarter-finals for the third consecutive season, they made timid exits in the last eight at Saracens two years ago and Munster last season.
"We have learned some harsh lessons," said the head coach, Sean Holley. "You have to stick to what you believe in, which we did not in the last two quarter-finals. We had different strategies then to cope with players being away with Wales for so long in the Six Nations, but what we have done this season is ingrain them in the Ospreys' way, stressing the history we have achieved in a short time, so that when they return from international duty they fit back in seamlessly.
"We were going well before the start of the Six Nations, and while much has been made of our failure in our two previous quarter-finals, I prefer to dwell on our final group match in January against Leicester. It was a match in which the winner went through, a real pressure occasion, and we outplayed them.
"We have been knocking at Europe's door for a while and to gain entry you need to be consistent, as Munster have been, which is why we only made two major signings last summer. We have an experienced, settled squad and we have players back from injury."
One of them is the Lions scrum-half Mike Phillips, who only played in one of Wales's nine internationals this season after damaging ankle ligaments against Clermont Auvergne in the Heineken Cup.
"I am getting back to my best," he said. "The Heineken Cup can make my season and I am confident we can beat Biarritz. We are a year older since Munster and more experienced. I appreciate we will have to produce one of our best performances as a region, but we are good enough."
Tommy Bowe scored in every round of the group stage and went on to be named the Six Nations player of the year. "We thought we were good enough to beat Munster but we were blown off the park," said the Ireland wing. "Everyone involved that day is desperate to ensure there is not a repeat. We have to have the belief we can do it and top teams in Europe know how to win away. We have to take it on to the next level. We are packed with internationals who have a big game mentality and we will need that on Saturday. Biarritz will be no pushovers."
The Ospreys' captain, Ryan Jones, said that last year's 43-9 defeat at Thomond Park would have no bearing on the encounter at Estadio Anoeta, a ground where Biarritz lost in the last eight to Northampton, who were a month later to be relegated from the Premiership, in 2007.
"We have to quieten the crowd early on and then pile on the pressure," said Jones. "We have to be disciplined and we have experience and a lot of the guys are in their third quarter-final. We have learned some lessons along the way but the coaching staff is different and we believe in what we are doing. We have a pack capable of competing with anyone as we showed against Leicester and we have backs who can create."
The Ospreys have warmed up for the tie with two Welsh derbies, losing at Newport Gwent Dragons before beating the Scarlets last weekend. "We did not have much preparation time before the Dragons, but we will be ready for Biarritz," said Holley, who watched the Basque club beat Toulouse in San Sebastián last month. "A match like this is about attitude, desire, effort and courage, qualities we showed against Leicester. We have players who are used to the big occasion and we have improved our style this season. It is our chance to create more history for the region."
