After the news emerged of the deal before the official announcement, Ospreys players had a stormy meeting with chief executive Lance Bradley where “one or two of the players” walked out early and a full contact training session was cancelled.
Current Ospreys players – including Wales captains Jac Morgan, Lake and internationals Sam Parry, Dan Edwards and Gareth Thomas – shared a statement, saying they have been “kept in the dark” over the region’s fate.
“We’re disappointed as players and staff at the way it’s been handled,” said Lake.
“But the nature of sports sometimes means you can’t always have it your own way.”
Ospreys were able to focus on the game against Lions and come away with three league points in the high-scoring draw played in atrocious conditions.
“To turn up and to put that performance on is remarkable,” said Lake.
“I don’t think many people would have expected something like that to come after a week, where we haven’t trained as much as we usually would and had a couple of difficult meetings during a couple of difficult days.”
Ospreys supporters protested against their owners and the WRU by turning the lights on their phones in the 11th minute at the Brewery Field.
“It’s a massive thank you to the fans, people who’ve turned up and supported us throughout the whole week,” said Lake.
“They’ve stuck with us and it doesn’t go unnoticed.”
