Dragons v Connacht Match Report
In what was a fantastic display from the home side the Irish men just nipped them in the final quarter after scoring two tries in quick succession.
The match began with a minute silence for hooker Elliot Dee’s mother, Lynn Dee who passed away last weekend.
It was the Dragons who opened their account first with a lovely penalty kick from fly-half Jason Tovey. But soon after Connacht crossed the whitewash under the sticks and the conversion came from Man of the Match Craig Ronaldson.
However in what was a fast-paced match the Dragons were next to add points to the scoreboard. It was centre Adam Hughes who charged down a clearance kick and kicked ahead to dive over the try line. The conversion was missed by late replacement Geraint Rhys Jones, after full-back Carl Meyer pulled out with a calf-injury. Meanwhile as the kick went wide of the posts fly-half Tovey was replaced by Angus O’Brien.
A penalty saw Connacht kick for the corner and push towards the white wash. The drive was stopped in its tracks by the Dragons but fullback Tiernan O’Halloran found his way over the try-line, with the conversion from Ronaldson.
But before the supporters knew it the Dragons were back in the Connacht half and a well timed pass from hooker Elliot Dee put Ashton Hewitt over for a try; Angus O’Brien kicked the conversion.
Half Time: Newport Gwent Dragons 15 – Connacht 14
During the opening exchanges of the second half replacement fly-half O’Brien booted over another penalty, and after slotting a second the Dragons took the lead to 21-14.
But Connacht weren’t happy with not leading and they took matters into their own hands with a try from Eoghan Masterson from a driving lineout. They then went on to secure the bonus point win with their fourth try from Bundee Aki and a conversion from Ronaldson.
Final Score: Newport Gwent Dragons 21 – Connacht 26
