“It was a proper bombshell to be dropped.”

Ahead of a fifth season in charge of Ospreys, head coach Toby Booth sat the players down and surprised them all by telling them that the 2024/25 season would be his last.

“He’s done awesome work with all of us,” says Morgan Morris, 26, whose career has flourished under the guidance of Booth.

“He’s helped me out a load, so it is a bit of a blow.

“All credit goes to Boothy and how awesome he’s been for us for the last five years. He’s had a clear way of playing the game and we’ve stuck to it with success.”

The succession plan is already in place at the Swansea.com Stadium, with defence coach Mark Jones moving up to the big job and Ospreys captain Justin Tipuric hanging up his boots and taking over from Jones in defence.

“Mark Jones has been awesome since coming in, so for him to step up into the next role is an exciting time for us,” Morris adds.

“For Tips, he’s incredible. An absolute legend, Welsh legend, Ospreys legend, and just an awesome bloke. Full stop.

“Anyone who loses Justin Tipuric as a player is going to miss him, no matter who you are. We are just lucky that he is staying as a coach for us.

“He’s one of the best players the Ospreys have ever had, probably one of the best Wales have ever had. As a player and human being, he’s unbelievable.”

For Morris, now an Ospreys stalwart and key part of a formidable back row with Tipuric, Booth has been the catalyst to his career so far.

“He’s done so much for me,” Morgan says.

“When he came in five years ago, I had five or six games for the Ospreys. I’m on 95 now.

“He’s helped me out a load with the mental side of the game as well. He’s always open to chat with me, always honest. We have a lot of trust in each other.

“We’ve had some very honest conversations over the last five years, and some very good conversations about growing myself on and off the pitch.”

On the pitch, Morris has been in excellent form in the last couple of seasons. A loose game to rival any in Welsh regional rugby is coupled with tremendous work ethic and improving physical game.

Morris, though, is keen to stress that he has plenty to work on if he is to achieve his international ambitions.

“I think I had a decent year last year,” Morris says.

“I need to build on that, keep working on both sides of the ball. I think I’m getting more consistent defensively, which is one of my main things to improve when I was younger.

“Building on weaknesses and making strengths stronger is the aim.”

With Wales going through a difficult period of form and a number of different players used by head coach Warren Gatland, it has surprised some that Morris has not been given a go in a back row that has seen less experienced players given a chance.

“I think over the last three or four years, I’ve been playing at a pretty good level,” he adds.

“Looking across at the back row for Wales, I feel like I’ve been performing up there the whole four years. So, I think it’s probably just a consistency thing.

“If I can keep being consistent in defence, especially, and let my attacking game do the talking, I feel like that will help.”

With Morris on the outside of the Wales squad, does he have contact with any of the Welsh coaching staff to know what they are looking for from him?

“No, I just hear from my coaches at Ospreys. What they want from me is the most important,” Morris reveals.

Playing in the back row in Wales always comes with some stiff competition, and Ospreys’ current squad typifies that.

The retiring Justin Tipuric is arguably the most talented back row of the professional era, while Jac Morgan is a Wales captain and potentially a British and Irish Lion next summer.

Throw in talented youngsters like Morgan Morse and Harri Deaves, and, of course, Morris himself, and the position is stacked with quality.

“Since I’ve been at Ospreys, we’ve always had a very strong back row,” Morris says.

“I think since Ospreys have been professional; they’ve always had a strong back row. It’s been a mainstay of the Ospreys pack.

“For me, it means I cannot have an off day. With the competition we have, you need to be at it every game.

“It’s good for all of us that we have the competition because it’s pushing us all to the next level. None of us are sitting around just waiting for the next game.”

While the back row has been consistent, the Ospreys’ squad have had several incomings and outgoings over the summer.

Wales internationals George North and Nicky Smith have joined Provence and Leicester Tigers respectively, while Sportin Wales co-founder Alex Cuthbert has also left.

In through the door are Phil Cokanasiga from Leicester Tigers, Steffan Thomas, Ryan Conbeer, and Keiran Hardy from Scarlets, as well as winger Daniel Kasende from Cheetahs.

“Steph Thomas coming in, I know Nicky Smith is a hard man to replace but Steph has been really strong for us in preseason,” Morris says, excited by the new blood in the squad.

“Phil [Cokanasiga] as well, coming in in the centre. I think he’s going to be a big addition for us. Big, physical ball carrier, which will help us a lot.”

Ospreys will need those new players to hit the ground running, because they have a difficult start to the new United Rugby Championship season.

A trip to Rodney Parade – where Ospreys lost last season – is followed by two home matches against South African outfits Stormers and Bulls, with a trip to Cork and a clash with Munster sandwiched between them.

“We’ve got a very tough start to the season,” Morris admits.

“Dragons away first one is a proper banana skin. They’ve beaten us the last two times we went down there. It’s a big one for psychologically to get over as well.

“Then we have a run of really tough opponents. I think at home to the South African teams, we back ourselves.

“We’re excited about the games coming up, and excited about the season starting because we’re in a good place to get stuck into it.”

Ospreys have a fine recent record against the South African teams in the URC, beating the Sharks at the Stoop, as well as recording memorable victories in South Africa against the Lions and Stormers.

With the Ospreys’ game plan more forwards-oriented, they are better placed than most to take on the power of the South African sides.

“You’ve got to front up to the physicality of the South African teams when you’re out there,” Morris explains.

“Our defence against the Stormers and Lions was very, very good. The forwards were huge for us out there.

“Against the Stormers, with the forwards doing their job, we gave our backs lots of opportunities to score tries.

“We learnt a lot in those games. We were fighting hard for each other and came out with a couple of big wins.”

Those wins counted for a lot – Ospreys qualified for the URC play-offs by the skin of their teeth, after two tight wins over Dragons and Cardiff.

Even though the season ended in disappointing fashion, with quarter final defeats to Munster in the URC, and Gloucester in the European Challenge Cup, Morris looks back on the season with pride.

“I think everyone at the club was hurting,” Morris reveals.

“Penalties and individual mistakes cost us in both games where we were competing well. We want to put Ospreys back to where they were in terms of pushing forward to the later rounds of the league and cups.

“I think we as Welsh people tend to look at the negative and always want to know where we can do better.

“We had something like a 2% chance of getting through to the play-offs at one point and maybe even less in Europe, so for us to get as far as we did, that was massive for us.

“It’s important for us to show the next generations of Ospreys fans and players that we are a team that competes at European and URC level and that we are a knockout rugby team.

“That’s where we want to be.”

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