Newport Gwent Dragons new signing, Tonderai Chavhanga could well make his Dragons debut on Friday as the Men of Gwent take on Ulster at Rodney Parade (7:05pm)
The South African international flyer is looking forward to getting out on the pitch at Rodney Parade.
“The running brand of rugby played by the Dragns is one I enjoy,” he said. “When looking at coming to Europe the fact that the Dragons like to move the ball around was a big incentive for me to come here.
“I’m glad to finally be here. I had a great training session yesterday and am looking forward to the weekend - It’s a lot warmer here than I’d expected!
Dragons Forwards Coach Danny Wilson is circumspect about the region’s iunjury worries – particularly in the front row. “I have a lot of faith in Nathan Buck,” he said. “He’s having a bit of a crash course and a big test first up but I believe he can perform.
“If you look at Dan Way, he came through the same system as Nathan and at Connacht played possibly his best game of rugby both at scrum time and in the loose. WE’ve had a couple of tightheads from the Premiership in training with us this week and we’ll look to make a definitive decision later in the week.
“This game will involve a lot of physicality and although Ulster we beaten by the Ospreys last weekend they were very competitive so there’s no doubt that this is a tough fixture.”
Newport-Gwent Dragons Squad:
Backs
Martyn Thomas, Matthew Pewtner, Mike Pool, Tonderai Chavhanga, Geraint O'Driscoll, Ashley Smith, Tom Riley, Matthew Jones, Jason Tovey, Joe Bedford, Wayne Evans
Forwards
Andrew Coombs, Darren Waters, Lewis Evans, Jevon Groves, Gavin Thomas, Rob Sidoli, Adam Jones, Sam Parry, Tom Willis, Rhys Buckley, Nathan Williams, Nathan Buck, Phil Price, Hugh Gustafson
Dragons play Ulster at Rodney Parade, Friday 30th September, 19:05
The following players are currently unavailable with injuries:
Ben Castle (6 weeks); Aaron Coundly (12 weeks); Dan Way (3 weeks); Gethin Robinson (LTI); Scott Morgan (2 weeks); Steve Jones (6 weeks); Tom Brown (2 weeks); Jonathan Evans (6 weeks); Adam Hughes (2 weeks); Jamie Smith (4weeks); Pat Leach (LTI); Will Harries (LTI)
The South African international flyer is looking forward to getting out on the pitch at Rodney Parade.
“The running brand of rugby played by the Dragns is one I enjoy,” he said. “When looking at coming to Europe the fact that the Dragons like to move the ball around was a big incentive for me to come here.
“I’m glad to finally be here. I had a great training session yesterday and am looking forward to the weekend - It’s a lot warmer here than I’d expected!
Dragons Forwards Coach Danny Wilson is circumspect about the region’s iunjury worries – particularly in the front row. “I have a lot of faith in Nathan Buck,” he said. “He’s having a bit of a crash course and a big test first up but I believe he can perform.
“If you look at Dan Way, he came through the same system as Nathan and at Connacht played possibly his best game of rugby both at scrum time and in the loose. WE’ve had a couple of tightheads from the Premiership in training with us this week and we’ll look to make a definitive decision later in the week.
“This game will involve a lot of physicality and although Ulster we beaten by the Ospreys last weekend they were very competitive so there’s no doubt that this is a tough fixture.”
Newport-Gwent Dragons Squad:
Backs
Martyn Thomas, Matthew Pewtner, Mike Pool, Tonderai Chavhanga, Geraint O'Driscoll, Ashley Smith, Tom Riley, Matthew Jones, Jason Tovey, Joe Bedford, Wayne Evans
Forwards
Andrew Coombs, Darren Waters, Lewis Evans, Jevon Groves, Gavin Thomas, Rob Sidoli, Adam Jones, Sam Parry, Tom Willis, Rhys Buckley, Nathan Williams, Nathan Buck, Phil Price, Hugh Gustafson
Dragons play Ulster at Rodney Parade, Friday 30th September, 19:05
The following players are currently unavailable with injuries:
Ben Castle (6 weeks); Aaron Coundly (12 weeks); Dan Way (3 weeks); Gethin Robinson (LTI); Scott Morgan (2 weeks); Steve Jones (6 weeks); Tom Brown (2 weeks); Jonathan Evans (6 weeks); Adam Hughes (2 weeks); Jamie Smith (4weeks); Pat Leach (LTI); Will Harries (LTI)
