Edinburgh proved they can mix it with the big boys of the Magners League with this dramatic victory, thanks to a try by flanker Alan MacDonald in the eighth minute of injury time.

They scored the only three tries of the match and showed persistence to the end to snatch arguably the best away victory of their history.

With the signings of Scottish internationalists James Hamilton and Chris Paterson, this really was a red letter day for the capital side.

They fully deserved this victory despite spending long periods of the game under pressure, not just for the way they scored the three tries but the fantastic spirit which carried them through right to the end.

MacDonald's try was the reward for dominating the nine minutes of injury time, as he supported wing Andrew Maxwell's dash for the corner - the inside pass was typical of the way the Scots kept the ball alive all night.

Ally Hogg got the opening score of the game and Edinburgh fully deserved to get off the mark after all their opening pressure and creativity.

Centre Ben Cairns made the break, thanks primarily to plenty of interplay by the other backs, but was held up just short of the line. Hogg took the ball forward the extra yard to get the try, converted by Calum MacRae.

MacRae missed a long range effort to extend the lead and Edinburgh were pegged back by four first-half penalties from James Hook.

A fifth kickable penalty in favour of the Ospreys was reversed for stamping but, strangely, referee Peter Fitzgibbon still sin-binned Hogg for the original offence of killing the ball.

Edinburgh, a man short, held out until half-time, but faced a similar battle early in the second half, not that it showed as they retook the lead with their second try just two minutes into the second half.

Again they had started brightly from the restart with plenty of off-loading in the tackle and eventually Nick De Luca in the centre was able to use an overlap outside him to sidestep his way under the posts. MacRae added the conversion.

The 14 men were able to hold out by the narrowest of margins as wing Aled Brew was just bundled into touch before getting the ball down over the line, a decision which went to the television match official, but then Hogg returned.

However, the parity in numbers would only last a couple of minutes. The Ospreys started an effective driving maul from a lineout on halfway and after it had rumbled forward 15 metres prop Geoff Cross attempted to bring it down by lying in the way and was sin-binned.

Hook landed the penalty from 40 metres and then slotted a sixth out of six kicks at goal as the scoreboard ticked down to give his team a cushion. However Edinburgh's spirit meant that was not enough.