Newport Gwent Dragons end their season with two home Magners League games against Irish province Connacht and Welsh region the Ospreys.
The Dragons take on Connacht on Friday night (7.10pm) and are aiming to end their season on a high after suffering five losses on the bounce in the league. However, despite their recent defeats The Dragons have battled hard and showed tremendous resolve.
Head Coach Paul Turner commented, "It is important that we finish our season on a high. We have a proud record at home and no one in the squad wants us to end our season disappointingly. Connacht have had three weeks rest coming into the game whereas we face our third game in seven days. Like us Connacht like to move the ball around and they have run both the Ospreys and the Blues close recently and were unlucky not to sneak wins. They are a dangerous side who are looking to secure the play off position for the Heineken Cup but we need to secure at the minimum a point to make sure we get that place. We are aiming to end our season on a high with two home wins. We have a proud home record and as we prepare for next season it is important that we carry on the momentum we have generated."
The Dragons have received a major boost going into the last two home games of the season with the news that Colin Charvis, Aled Brew and Paul Emerick are all fit and have been selected in the first XV for the game against Connacht.
The Dragons have made nine changes to the side that lost to the Blues last Tuesday night with Aled Brew coming in on the left wing, Richard Fussell moving to the right and Gareth Wyatt going onto the replacements bench. The other changes among the backs sees Emerick comes in for Phil Dollman and Alex Walker replacing Gareth Cooper (shoulder). There is an all-new front row for Friday night with Adam Black replacing Dai Maddocks at loose head prop, at hooker Steve Jones has recovered from his shoulder injury that forced him to withdraw from the replacements bench for the Blues game taking over from Ben Daly while Lee Harrison comes in for Rhys Thomas. Ian Gough replaces Andrew Hall at lock while Charvis comes in at open side flanker for Jamie Ringer.
Looking ahead to Friday night's game captain Kevin Morgan said, "Connacht is our third game of four in ten days in what is a challenging period for our squad. However, The Dragons have always been about digging in and playing for each other as was evident on Tuesday night at the Arms Park. As captain I cannot fault the boys commitment or enthusiasm and we need to show that again in our final two home games. There is the extra incentive that if we win we will qualify for the play off game and have the opportunity to secure Heineken Cup rugby at Rodney Parade next year, which for our squad development is vital. However, Connacht are a tough team to crack and close games are a feature when we play one another so a big performance from the team is needed if we are to secure the points."
Before their narrow loss to Leinster last time at home in the League, The Dragons had gone 10 games unbeaten at Rodney Parade. Connacht have not won at Rodney Parade since the advent of regional rugby and the last five matches between the two sides have gone in favour of the home team.
Dragons Team for Connacht Game
Kevin Morgan, Richard Fussell, Paul Emerick, Gareth Maule, Aled Brew, Ceri Sweeney, Alex Walker, Adam Black, Steve Jones, Lee Harrison, Ian Gough, Luke Charteris, Joe Bearman, Colin Charvis, Michael Owen.
Replacements From
Ben Daly, Jamie Corsi, Andrew Hall, Dan Lydiate, Gareth Wyatt, Aled Thomas, Phil Dollman, Gareth Baber
