Dragons PS Head Coach James Chapron has a host of new faces available for the third round of the British and Irish Cup Campaign. The changes see a mixture of youth and experience named, through the inclusion of Dragons senior players and Principality Premiership players too.
The back three sees fullback Joe Goodchild named alongside wingers Rio Dyer and Barney Nightingale. The centre partnership has one change made to it as Newport RFC’s Chay Smith is joined by Connor Edwards, whilst the half-back pairing is all change as Dorian Jones gets the nod at fly-half whilst youngster Callum Morris is named as scrumhalf.
The front row has one change made to it as prop Garin Harris joins experienced Dragons loosehead prop Phil Price and young hooker Ellis Shipp. The second row sees RGC1404’s Henri Williams get the nod alongside Cross Keys lock Josh Skinner, with the back row including flanker Lennon Greggains, who is given the responsibility of captaining the side, alongside Taine Basham and Bargoed RFC number 8 Ieuan Jones.
Looking forward to the upcoming matches, Chapron commented: “It’s a double header which is a good thing for us, so we can have a stab at it twice - It will be good to see where we are.
“With the amount of injuries that both the Dragons and our Premiership sides currently have, it gives us an opportunity to play the likes of our 17-year-old hooker Will Griffiths who will make his debut for the side off the bench. He’s a very good player and it’s a good opportunity for him to come off the bench at this level and we will see what he can do with a bit of pressure. We also have a young nine, Callum Morris, who we recently signed from Wales exiles, this will be his first game at this level as well.”
He continued; “The British and Irish Cup is a really good opportunity to see where our boys are at, and to be able to give them an experience which they can add to their training that they may not get whilst with the clubs.
“Last year’s squad contained the likes of Leon Brown, James Benjamin, Joe Davies and Harrison Keddie. They were all British and Irish Cup players, so that probably shows the value of the competition and it gave opportunities for someone like Charlie Davies & Jack Dixon who were coming back from injuries to be integrated at a decent level. The value of the competition is not always in the results.”
Dragons Premiership team to face Yorkshire Carnegie
15 Joe Goodchild, 14 Rio Dyer, 13 Chay Smith (Newport RFC), 12 Connor Edwards, 11 Barney Nightingale, 10 Dorian Jones, 9 Callum Morris; 1 Phil Price, 2 Eliis Shipp, 3 Garin Harris (Newport RFC), 4 Henri Williams (RGC 1404/ Dragons), 5 Josh Skinner (Cross Keys), 6 Lennon Greggains ©, 7 Taine Basham, 8 Ieuan Jones (Bargoed RFC).
Replacements; Will Griffiths, Josh Reynolds, Keagan Bale, Elliot Ferriman (Pontypool RFC), Morgan Burgess (Newport RFC), James Leadbetter (Cross Keys), Steffan Jones (Bedwas).
Dragons PS return to Ystrad Mynach next weekend, in the return fixture and fans are reminded that all British and Irish Cup home matches are free to Dragons Seasonal Members as well as all Gwent Principality Premiership sides’ Season Ticket Holders, supporters must bring their Season Tickets/ Membership cards with them to gain free access on the day.
Supporters without Dragons Seasonal Memberships or Gwent Premiership Season Tickets will be able to purchase a ticket on the gate with prices at just £5 for an adult and £3 for concessions, U16s go for free!
