Head Coach Filo Tiatia wants his Dragons to adopt a style that fans can relate to and ‘be proud of’ as they prepare to launch the new BKT United Rugby Championship season.
The Men of Gwent jet to Belfast for a Friday evening showdown with Ulster Rugby at the Affidea Stadium (kick-off 8.05pm.)
Ahead of the Round 1 clash, Tiatia has spoken about his hopes for the new campaign and how his squad can develop during a first block that also features home games with Hollywoodbets Sharks, Cardiff Rugby and Ospreys.
“Like last season, it’s about playing a style that our fans can relate to, that they can be proud of,” he stated.
“The DNA of this group is blue collar people, they work hard, and they need to earn the things that we’re working to, so there’s no difference.
“We’re working hard in terms of the how we want to play. You’ve seen two games of what we’re trying to play, and it’s probably just being a little bit more clinical when we’re not applying pressure on ourselves.
“Last season was last season, and it’s turning over a new leaf in terms of what we want to achieve together.”
Dragons have welcomed 14 new faces in the close season, and many could get a debut in the league opener in Belfast.
“The boys have worked hard, spent 11 weeks together, and we’re growing as a group. New players have come in and added value to the group,” said Tiatia.
“We’ve had two pre-season games, we’ve improved in different areas, and we’ve still got lots to keep working on. We’re shifting okay.
“We’ve recruited players we thought we needed, but we’ve also added some staff to the group. We’ve got a bigger squad and it’s also great to have Dale (MacLeod) in the environment as a senior coach. We’ll see how we now go.
“Ultimately, we want to improve. We know where we are, we’ve got a group of men that have come in to make a shift to where we want to go to and we look forward to the season now.”