Forwards Coach Ceri Jones insists Dragons are ready for a ‘massive game’ as they head to France to face Castres Olympique on Saturday in the European Challenge Cup (kick-off 2pm UK time).
Dragons claimed an impressive 31-17 win back in November over the Top14 side – inspired by a Taine Basham hat-trick.
However, Jones knows Dragons face a huge challenge this time when the teams meet in Pool 1 at Stade Pierre-Fabre.
Castres have not lost on home soil in Europe since December 2015 and the French side know a win would take them top of the standings with one round of matches to go.
And Jones expects Castres to come ‘fully loaded’ for a critical European tussle.
“It’s a massive game over in France against a huge pack so we know exactly what is coming,” said Jones.
“We know if we can go out there and put in our best performance then we can come away with a result.
“That’s not taking anything away from them, we know what challenge is ahead of us, but we are going to give it our best shot.
“We have built a positive environment when you come in the door and the players are buying into that,” he added.
“It’s exciting for them to challenge on more than one front.
“Over the Christmas period we showed we can be competitive. We know we have got huge strides to make yet, we are far from the finished article, but we are moving forward.
Reflecting on the win back in November, Jones added: “Speed was a big key for us on that day.
“Against a team that is so big and physical, you have to move them around and you have to be a little bit quicker in thought process and in transition.
“I think they will come fully loaded at home,” he added.
“The team that played last week against Toulon wasn’t the strongest so I expect their full team to be out against us.
“We have shown big strides in developing as a group this year in all competitions.
“We intend to focus on ourselves and we intend to give our best performance. We’re looking forward to the challenge.”
Can Dragons make the knockout stages in Europe? Find out when we face Enisei-STM in the final pool game of the European Challenge Cup at Rodney Parade on Friday, January 17 (kick-off 8pm). Click HERE to buy tickets or call the Ticket Office on 01633 674990.
We know if we can go out there and put in our best performance then we can come away with a result...
