Dragons Suffer Derby Day Defeat to Ospreys
Dragons started their United Rugby Championship season with a narrow 23-27 defeat to Welsh rivals the Ospreys at Rodney parade.
Dragons started strongly and held a 16-10 lead at half time thanks to a try from Josh Lewis and nine points from the boot of fly half Sam Davies.
But Ospreys responded with a brace from Michael Collins, a try from Luke Morgan to go alongside twelve points from the returning Gareth Anscombe as they claimed victory.
A late try from replacement scrum half Rhodri Williams wasn’t enough as Ospreys held out for a big win.
Dragons welcome champions Leinster to Rodney Parade next week while the Ospreys face rivals Cardiff Rugby in round two.
It was the moment Dragons rugby fans had been waiting for; the return of competitive rugby with a stadium full of supporters welcomed back to Rodney Parade.
The Dragons and Ospreys have nurtured a healthy rivalry of late, with both sides getting the better of the other in recent encounters.
The game started well for the Men of Gwent racing into a 10-0 lead in the opening twelve minutes, using their Rodney crowd to inspire them on.
Josh Lewis was the first to cross the whitewash, collecting a lovely Sam Davies grubber kick to score his side’s first try of the United Rugby Championship.
Davies converted the score before extending the Dragons lead with three points off the tee.
Ospreys responded well with centre Michael Collins running a great attacking line before side-stepping his way over to score his first try for the Ospreys on debut.
Anscombe converted the try on his return to the side before Davies continued his pre-season form and knocked over three more points in an immediate reaction.
The former Ospreys fly half then put over an excellent drop goal to extend the Dragons lead to nine points.
There was time just before half time for Ospreys to narrow the gap and Anscombe did just that with another three points off the tee.
The 16-10 lead quickly disappeared for the home side as Anscombe kicked three points before two tries from Michael Collins and Luke Morgan gave the Ospreys a 16-27 lead with twenty minutes to go.
A late charge from the Dragons saw Rhodri Williams score a fine individual try from the ruck, but the home side couldn’t quite get over the line.
Ospreys saw out the final minutes and left Rodney Parade with victory while the Dragons walked away with a losing bonus point in round one of URC action.
