Ospreys v Leinster: On two wings and a prayer By Iain Morrison Published on Sunday 27 May 2012 02:54 Ospreys" chances of beating Leinster depend on their mercurial backs There are those who give the Ospreys Bob Hope or no hope in today's RaboDirect PRO12 final at the RDS Showground in Dublin but the same was said two years back when they met the same opposition at the same ground and walked away with the league title. In fact, the best side in Europe have lost the domestic final for two years in succession, to Munster and the Ospreys, which will only make Leinster all the more determined to do the European and domestic double this time around. The question is, just how much have three brutal matches over the course of the last four weeks taken out of the Dublin side? The Ospreys beat Leinster home and away in the league this season, although you shouldn't read too much into either result. The first win came on the opening weekend of the RaboDirect when Leinster were shorn of their Irish World Cup contingent and the second victory was during the Six Nations. It will be an emotionally charged final for the Welsh region, who are bidding farewell to several of their favourite sons including the immensely popular will-o"-the-wisp winger Shane Williams, while the Welsh prop Paul James is heading to Bath next season. Both men will want to go out on a high note. The Ospreys are always capable of springing a surprise because they have a backline that can score from all corners of the field, as they proved when putting 45 points past a thoroughly demoralised Munster at the semi-final stage. One length-of-the-field effort just before half time was sparked by the twin turbos of Richard Fussell and Hanno Dirksen, who make up the other two-thirds of the Ospreys" dangerous back three. Meanwhile, centre Ashley Beck may just be the most underrated player in the entire squad and he is touted as a Test replacement for Jamie Roberts when Wales line up against Australia on 7 June. As happened two years ago, the Ospreys will want to get a nudge on up front and then keep the game fluid to give their back three a chance to show their pace. That presumes that their Welsh forwards, led by the outstanding breakaway Justin Tipuric, can provide quick phase ball at the breakdown when Leinster have the personnel and the inclination to turn every ruck into a pub brawl, even without the physical presence of Sean O'Brien, who is sidelined for today's game with a knee injury. The Ospreys are a frustrating side, typically Welsh if you like, in that, when the wind is at their backs, they are almost unstoppable but consistency hasn't been their forte, at least until now. Since their new coach Steve Tandy took over the reins from Sean Holley (head coach) and new Scotland coach Scott Johnson (director of rugby) in mid-February the Ospreys have lost two of their nine matches. In the nine matches ahead of Tandy's arrival the team had lost five and won four. [Leinster] are a fantastic team. To win the Heineken Cup three times in four seasons takes some doing," said the new Ospreys boss. It's a testament to the squad, their team and coaching staff. But, hopefully, we're going to go there and spoil the party. That will be the greatest statement we can make. We want to impose ourselves on Leinster and make it difficult for them. We're going to have to get on top up front. We have got to be clinical and not give them any cheap possession. We can't kick inaccurately to Isa Nacewa and Rob Kearney because we know how good they are at running it back. But, personally, I'm really excited about it.