Lock George Nott has called on Dragons to use the EPCR Challenge Cup to force a ‘momentum shift’ in the season - as they prepare to tackle French heavyweights Oyonnax on home soil.
The Men of Gwent are back at Rodney Parade for the Round One of European competition on Saturday evening (kick-off 8pm).
Nott lines up in the boilerroom for the clash alongside Joe Davies and believes Dragons owe fans a performance as they strive for knockout rugby and to build into the festive derbies.
“We need a momentum shift, you could feel that in the Ospreys game, the change of mood with the fans after the game,” said Nott.
“We owe them (the fans) because they support us week in, week out and we have only given them one win to celebrate all season. Going into the derbies with two wins under our belts would be great.
“We need to look at how we are going to win games. Are we getting better in certain areas? I can honestly say that we are, but it's no good learning lessons if you don't then get the wins.
“We have a lot of belief in the squad, and we have a lot of talent. We need to knuckle down, keep working hard and I am sure the results will come.
“Oyonnax will be a tough challenge and one of the hardest things about playing teams like that is that you don't know exactly what to expect, so this week we have mostly focused on ourselves,” he added.
“We know what we need to do and that if we do what we are capable off then we will be a tricky team to break down, especially at home with the crowd behind us.
“We can't look too much about what they will bring, we’ll worry about ourselves.”
Dragons face future games with Section Paloise, Zebre Parma and Hollywoodbets Sharks in the pool stages.
But Nott is looking no further forward than day one on home soil.
“In Europe that first game, especially at home, is crucial if you want to progress out of the group,” he said.
“We know how important it is and are excited by it.
“The pressure is building and it's how we react, so hopefully we will show everyone a good reaction.
“We all start level,” he added. “We are going for it and one thing you want to do as a player is get to the final stages of competitions.
“We are up for it and the Challenge Cup has come at the right time.
“We enjoyed it and a lot of boys hadn’t experienced knockout rugby.
“Now we've had a taste we want to go further than last year.”
We have a lot of belief in the squad, and we have a lot of talent. We need to knuckle down, keep working hard and I am sure the results will come...
