Captain Harrison Keddie acknowledged Dragons must be better at the battle of breakdown as they prepare for the second part of a Scottish double header this weekend.
Keddie led the Dragons as they were beaten 30-14 by Edinburgh at Rodney Parade in the United Rugby Championship on Saturday evening.
The back row admitted after the game that the breakdown had been pivotal as Edinburgh were able to operate with fast ball throughout the game while the home side were disrupted.
And with Glasgow Warriors this Saturday on a fast 4G pitch at Scotstoun Stadium, Keddie knows where improvements must come.
“We had a slow start to the game and couldn’t get into the flow,” he said. “They were better than us in the first half and we weren’t accurate enough in the second half, in regard to our breakdown work, to get our attacking shape going.
“It’s frustrating. We put a lot of effort in to try and build a multi-phase attack and then that breaks down because of turnovers or little errors.
“It’s disappointing to lose at home, especially after the break, and we have got to look at our attacking breakdown,” he added.
“It was an area where they were able to slow our ball down or turn ball over, which meant we couldn’t get the speed of ball that we wanted to.
“We have got some dangerous back three players when you allow them to get ball in space, so that is a major area we have got to look at.
“It was two teams wanting to play similar styles and they had a lot of runners coming around the corner fast with a dangerous back three on the kick chase.
“To be blunt, they were better at it on the night than us and we need to look at that."
Dragons tasted success at Glasgow last season after a dramatic final few minutes and a memorable late conversion miss.
And Keddie admitted Dean Ryan’s men would need to be at their best in Scotland this season.
He said: “Glasgow are an improved team this year with some good results.
“You know what to expect when you go up there, they play a fast, attacking game with high ball in play so it is going to be a tough match.
“We need a win now. We are always in these tight games going into the last 20 minutes, but we have got to change what we do to make sure we come out with the right results.”
