Dean Ryan insists the trip to South Africa has been a powerful one for Dragons - even after a tough examination on the field.
After a season when Covid has again caused huge disruption, the two-week trip has allowed the players and coaching team to spend long periods together.
The team jet back from South Africa today (Saturday) after games with Vodacom Bulls and Cell C Sharks in Pretoria and Durban.
And while the rugby challenge has been a huge one the Director of Dragons Rugby believes the time away has been of benefit.
“It has been a powerful two weeks for us as a region with players and staff coming together,” he said.
“We’ve been able to build relationships and people who have sat outside the squad, therefore the focus in the week hasn't always been on them, have come alive in these environments.
“We’ve been under huge pressure in games, but we've talked a lot about that and how we want to represent ourselves when we know that's the situation.
“We've got players integrating back in (from Wales) and that's not as easy as them just dropping in.
“We’ve now got god competition in the back row, competition in the front row too, as people come back in and raise the bar. I'm looking forward to seeing how they react to that.
“Being here has allowed us to create a lot of good behaviours, in terms of how we talk about the game and how we share information. That's been powerful when we spend so much time together.”
Reflecting on the playing test against the might of the South African teams when they are loaded with internationals, Ryan believes it is a challenge that will ultimately benefit Northern Hemisphere sides.
He said: “I was fortunate to tour here a few times, both for club and country, and how keen they are to see us here has been humbling.
“It is a bit of a lull, though, because what is coming in the games is what you would expect from South Africa.
“South Africa has been a strong addition to the URC. You can’t play the same way that you do in the Northern Hemisphere and it’s a big rugby experience.
“They are enormous franchises over in South Africa,” he added. “We trained at a school earlier in the week with 1,500 boys that has ten teams in each year.
“They have the Currie Cup as an A League. The Bulls played Morne Steyn in that competition five days before putting him on the bench against us.
“The structures here, the resources that are coming through, are impressive and you get a real feel for it being in the country, with big stadiums and all the South African internationals back in selection.
“It’s a challenge to the rest of us, certainly for us at the Dragons and within Wales, about how we answer this challenge and how we are competitive in the URC going forward.
“It’s an old-fashioned rugby challenge coming to South Africa which I think is vital to experience. As a rugby challenge, I think it's huge.”
It’s a challenge to the rest of us, certainly for us at the Dragons and within Wales, about how we answer this challenge and how we are competitive in the URC going forward..
