Ospreys will welcome back their full contingent of British &Irish Lions players for Saturday’s RaboDirect PRO12 game against Edinburgh, with head coach Steve Tandy looking forward to finally running out in front of the Liberty Stadium crowd.

The Welshmen have been away on their travels so far this season, with an opening day 24-19 win against Treviso before last week’s 29-all draw with Leinster – a stark contrast to last season where they lost their first three games.

The Ospreys return to their home patch this weekend for the visit of Edinburgh, safe in the knowledge they have won their last nine home games in the PRO12.

Their last defeat came against visiting Glasgow on September14 last year, although Ospreys have won just one of their last five games against Scottish opponents.

The team is also boosted by the return of skipper Alun Wyn Jones, who is making his first appearance of the season since captaining the Lions to success in Australiain the Third Test in Sydney.

He joins fellow Lions Adam Jones, Richard Hibbard, and Ian Evans while Justin Tipuric starts on the bench.

Ryan Jones has failed to recover from a shoulder injury that put him out of the game with Leinster but Jeff Hassler will make his first Ospreys start.

Aisea Natoga will also make his debut if he comes off the bench with Tandy happy to have a larger squad to chose from.

“We’ve got the five Lions boys back in the team this weekend, which will naturally give everybody a boost,” said Tandy.

“They’ve been fantastic since reporting back for duty and it’s good to be able to have them all available for selection.

“I’m sure that the fans will be looking forward to welcoming them home on Saturday and looking forward to seeing them back in the black shirt, representing the cause with the passion and commitment we’ve come to expect from the boys.

“It’s great to be back at the Liberty this weekend, we’re all looking forward to being home again after two tough games at the road.

“Treviso and Leinster are among the two most difficult places to go in the PRO12 so to have come through a tough start to the season unbeaten, with six points and two positive performances, is a pleasing start.

“Over the next few weeks we need to kick on and raise a higher level again. We’ve got a few work-on’s from last weekend, some areas of the performance that need to improve, but it’s been a good few days in training preparing for the game and there’s a real buzz about the place.”

For Edinburgh, front row forwards Geoff Cross and Aleki Lutui will start their first match of the season as the side chase only the second victory in the last 16 visits to Wales since 2009.

The pair’s promotion from the bench is the only change to the side that kicked off last Friday’s 16-13 win over Newport Gwent Dragons at Murrayfield, with back-row Roddy Grant handed the captaincy in place of rested hooker Ross Ford.

Edinburgh’s last four fixtures have all been won by the home side on the day, whilst their only away victory in their last nine trips in all competitions was their 9-7 win over Zebre in Parma in March.

But while they have not been victorious at the Liberty Stadium since April25, 2009, and have beaten Ospreys once in the last four, head coach Alan Solomons hopes his players can put in a performance.

“Ospreys have consistently been one of the top sides in the PRO12. They're always in contention when the competition reaches the business end,” said Solomons.

"They're very tough opponents, especially at home, so it's going to be a real challenge for the players. However, the way I look at it, is that it's a wonderful opportunity for them to show what they can do.

"The way things have gone, Geoff [Cross] and Aleki [Lutui] have had no game time and it's important that they get that as part of a rotation.

"It's now up to them to perform and help maintain the standards set by the pack last week.

"They are experienced international players and should slot in to the side seamlessly, while reselection of the backs allows us to retain a measure of consistency in that area."

At Liberty Stadium, 6.30pm.
Referee: Marius Mitrea (FIR, 19th competition game)
Assistant Referees: Gwyn Morris, Chris Williams (both WRU)
Citing Commissioner: John Charles (WRU)
TMO: Paul Adams (WRU)

LIVE on S4C and BBC ALBA