The winger played a big part in the victories over Cardiff Blues at the Arms Park pre-Christmas and at Parc y Scarlets on Boxing Day, and is hoping to get the nod for the second leg of the Domino’s Derby Series against the Scarlets on Friday night, which kicks off at 7.15pm.
Looking forward to the return game against their arch rivals from across the Loughor Bridge, Dirksen backed the Ospreys fans – who made their presence known at both away games – to create a special atmosphere at the region’s home.
“There was an awesome atmosphere at Llanelli, and to have them again on Friday night so soon is even better,” he said. “Hopefully there will be another big crowd and another awesome atmosphere.”
Dirksen is fast closing in on a half-century of regional appearances, with the Boxing Day clash being his 48th outing in an Ospreys jersey. While his physical, all action style has made him a fans favourite in Ospreylia, he admits that he has come to be seen as something of a pantomime villain in the Welsh derby games, roundly booed by opposition fans in both Cardiff and Llanelli recently.
“When there’s a big crowd there you just want to entertain them. That’s what it’s all about. I want to give the crowd a good show. We worked really hard on the day and got the win both times, which is awesome. What we need to do now is work on improving our performance to get to the level expected of the Ospreys.”
Since scoring his first Ospreys try on his first start, as an 18-year old student featuring in the LV= Cup against Leeds at the Liberty Stadium almost four years ago, Dirksen has established himself as a quality finisher, with 14 tries to date for the region. He thought he’d added his 15th on Boxing Day only for his touchdown to be ruled out by the TMO. Although his view is, understandably, that it was a try, he feels that the final outcome was more satisfactory for the team.
“At the time, and then looking at the screen about 20 times, everyone thought it was a try,” he said.
“But, I think Ian’s(Evans) try was an easier kick for Dan (Biggar), was a better option, and he got it over. That gave us a little bit more of a lead which meant that they had to score a try to get something from the game, not just a kick.”
Dirksen is now six games back following a year out with a knee injury, and he insists that he is looking forward to the future now rather than looking back at his missed year.
“It’s a little bit hard to get back to normal after being out for 12 months. Anybody would feel a little bit rusty but I’ve tried to not to think about it like that. I just try to play like I did before I was injured last year, and try to focus on what I can achieve in the games coming up, not what has already happened.”
