As the Guinness PRO14 counts down to completing all fixtures to Round 11, Dragons will host Connacht on Friday night in one of just three remaining rescheduled games.
This Round 5 fixture was originally scheduled to take place in early November and now provides rugby fans with some Friday night action ahead of the Guinness Six Nations kick-off this weekend.
It’s a Cross-conference clash between Dragons seeking to apply pressure on third-placed Ospreys in Conference A and Connacht, who need a win to maintain a realistic chance of ousting Munster for top spot in Conference B come Round 16.
Dragons have shown plenty of evidence of progression under director of rugby Dean Ryan this season and are looking to improve their home record. Connacht come into the game having won three consecutive away fixtures, but have not achieved four in succession since 2002.
However, Andy Friend’s men have held the upper hand against the Welsh region in their previous two meetings with no win for Dragons against the Irish province since September 2017.
Commenting ahead of the fixture, Dragons Head Coach Dean Ryan said: “Connacht are a really underrated side,” said Ryan. “They have a couple of guys who are quite influential that go off with Ireland, but they are pretty robust throughout the entire season. They are built for being competitive week in and week out - I see a lot of things that we want us to b in them.
“Connacht have been used to being that 'other' Irish side for some time and like to challenge that perception. I do enjoy watching them. They have a lot of players that don't necessarily hit the radar of international level and they make them better, which is a good test of an environment. “
Commenting on the game, Head Coach Andy Friend says: “This is a must-win for us given results of the last few weeks. While our home form has been disappointing, we’ve had honest reviews of what’s gone wrong and the reaction in training has been good.
Our away form has been a positive for us this season, so we’ll look to keep that going tomorrow albeit against tough opposition and a tough place to go in Rodney Parade. We’ve a number of players earning significant caps tomorrow so I’d like to congratulate Finlay, Jack, Gavin and Paul on the milestones. We’ve also got Oisin Dowling in line for his first appearance which has been long overdue after his back injury, and that’s a testament to him and the medical department. Overall we’ve a pretty healthy squad which is a boost heading into a key part of the season.”
Team:
Dragons: Jordan Williams, Owen Jenkins, Jack Dixon, Jamie Roberts, Ashton Hewitt, Sam Davies, Rhodri Williams (CAPT); Brok Harris, Richard Hibbard, Lloyd Fairbrother, Ben Carter, Joe Maksymiw, Huw Taylor, Ben Fry, Harrison Keddie. Replacements: Ellis Shipp, Greg Bateman, Chris Coleman, Joe Davies, Lewis Evans, Luke Baldwin, Josh Lewis, Aneurin Owen.
Connacht: John Porch, Peter Sullivan, Tom Daly, Peter Robb, Matt Healy, Jack Carty, Caolin Blade, Denis Buckley, Shane Delahunt, Finlay Bealham, Niall Murray, Gavin Thornbury, Paul Boyle (CAPT), Conor Oliver, Abraham Papali’i. Replacements: Jonny Murphy, Jordan Duggan, Jack Aungier, Oisin Dowling, Eoghan Masterson, Kieran Marmion, Sean O’Brien, Alex Wootton.