Tom Bowen double leads Cardiff to 26-0 derby win over Ospreys

Cardiff beat Ospreys 26-0 at St Helen's to move into seventh place in the United Rugby Championship, with Tom Bowen scoring two of their four tries. According to BBC Sport's match report, Josh Adams and teenage hooker Tom Howe also crossed as the visitors secured a bonus-point victory in front of a sell-out crowd of 5,592 in Swansea.

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The result leaves Ospreys ninth as the competition pauses for five weeks during November's Nations Championship. It was only the second match at the revamped St Helen's, following the hosts' opening win there against Dragons. This time, Ospreys were unable to register a point; BBC Sport noted that they had also been shut out in a 23-0 defeat by Munster in October 2024.

Bowen finished Cardiff's early pressure with the opening try. Ospreys thought they had answered through prop Steffan Thomas, but a television review overturned the initial award after scrum-half Johan Mulder was judged to have prevented the grounding. Cardiff then used a move from a scrum to send Bowen away for his second, establishing control of the scoreboard despite the home side's opportunities.

Centre Steffan Emanuel helped extend the lead before half-time. After one break and kick had been covered by the Ospreys defence, he supplied another kick that Adams collected to score following a turnover penalty won by Dan Thomas. Cardiff reached the interval 19-0 ahead. Ospreys also lost flanker Ross Moriarty to a head injury, with Morgan Morse replacing him.

The hosts applied pressure through their scrum after the restart, prompting Cardiff to introduce props Scott Sio and Javan Sebastian. Ospreys co-captain Sam Parry was held up over the line, while Cardiff received a warning over repeated penalties. Howe contributed a turnover penalty before the 18-year-old was driven over for the only try of the second half, completing the four-try haul. Emanuel's late covering tackle stopped Keelan Giles and preserved the shutout.

Both teams played without several Wales squad members ahead of the international campaign. Adams was the only Wales player based at a Welsh region released for match time, while Cardiff were missing six other squad members. Ospreys were also without four Wales players, and a late groin injury to Lawson Creighton meant Cardiff loanee Harri Wilde started at fly-half against his parent club.