Glasgow Warriors head coach Gregor Townsend is determined to beat Ospreys in the race to secure a home semi-final by claiming victory at the Liberty Stadium on Friday. A win for the Scots would guarantee home advantage with one round remaining but it won’t be an easy task with Ospreys unbeaten at home in the league this season. The Welsh side have won their last four GUINNESS PRO12 matches but Glasgow are top of the table for a reason; they’ve lost just one of their last eight league fixtures and remain the second best away side in the league this season. Townsend is certain his players will be prepared to put their bodies on the line in order to finish the regular season on top of the table. "We're well aware of the importance of tomorrow night's game and what it means to everyone associated with the club,” he said. "Securing our place in the play-offs is a massive achievement, but we're now playing for home advantage and we know these next two games are crucial to achieving that outcome. "Ospreys are only four points behind and they too are playing for a home play-off, so we're expecting an extremely tough game at the Liberty Stadium. "They have played at a consistently high level throughout the season and have a good balance in their play – a strong, aggressive defence allied to an excellent attacking game. "We will need to put in one of our best performances of the season to come away with a positive result.“ Glasgow make five changes from the team that beat Connacht in Galway in the last round of matches. Duncan Weir replaces Finn Russell at fly-half, while captain Josh Strauss returns at No.8. Elsewhere Ryan Grant comes in for Jerry Yanuyanutawa at loose-head, Pat MacArthur replaces Fraser Brown at hooker with Tim Swinson coming in for Leone Nakarawa in the second-row. Ospreys will be comforted by the knowledge that the Warriors lost 19-9 at Scarlets last November on their most recent visit to Wales. They drop Wales flanker Dan Lydiate to the replacements bench for Friday’s game with fellow Welsh international James King preferred at blindside flanker. Tom Grabham misses out with an abdomen problem while Canadian wing Jeff Hassler returns after five months on the sidelines with a knee problem and Tylor Ardon replaces Lloyd Peers in the second-row. And head coach Steve Tandy believes his team will have to put in an even better performance than in last month’s Judgement Day victory over Cardiff Blues if they are to beat the league leaders. “After the Blues game there was a pretty tough review process because as well as the obvious good things there was a lot that we weren't happy with,” he revealed. "That's the key really, never being happy with where you are but always striving for improvement, pursuing excellence. “That's always the expectation within this environment, and that has been very much the focus in our preparations for Friday night. “We need to be more accurate, more clinical, and we need everybody to know their roles and how they fit into the plan. “If we have that, and if we prepare thoroughly then we can look to put together a performance that could put us where we need to be to achieve our goal on Friday." Follow us on Facebook, join the conversation on Twitter, sign up to our YouTube channel for extensive match highlights and sign up for our newsletter for regular updates on the GUINNESS PRO12 At Liberty Stadium, 7.35pm Live on BBC WALES Referee: George Clancy (IRFU, 71st competition game) Assistant Referees: Neil Hennessy, Martyn Lewis (WRU) Citing Commissioner: John Charles (WRU ) TMO: Derek Bevan (WRU)
