What a way to start the year! Centurion Aaron Wainwright grabbed a try on his 100th game as Dragons defeated Welsh rivals Scarlets 13-12 in a tense BKT United Rugby Championship at a wet and blustery Rodney Parade.
Wainwright grabbed a first half try on his milestone game to cancel an opener from Tom Rogers as both teams battled hard in gruelling wet weather.
A tight and feisty second half saw Cai Evans nudge the Men of Gwent further ahead before a late Ioan Lloyd try sparked a frantic finale.
But it was Dragons who held firm to secure a third successive home win – the first time since 2020 that the club has achieved that feat at Rodney Parade.
Dragons made eight changes, with young centre Harri Ackerman making his full debut while Ewan Rosser was recalled to partner brother Jared out wide.
Wainwright led the team out on his 100th appearance and was in the thick of the early collisions as the home side secured a penalty for offside.
Evans opened the scoring in now relentless rain before a huge home scrum was greeted by a thunderous ovation, but this time the resulting penalty drifted wide right.
Ackerman threated a line break as Dragons enjoyed early territory as the weather continued to deteriorate by the minute.
Jared Rosser burst down the left and Harri Keddie hit a great line, but the greasy ball was proving hard to control under pressure.
Scarlets had been pinned back for the opening quarter but struck when they went right and Ioan Lloyd found space and put Tom Rogers into a gap to dive over. Sam Costelow added the conversion.
Steff Evans spilled a high ball to hand Dragons territory and the chance to respond as Will Reed kicked to the corner. But two lineouts lost in quick succession ended the pressure.
The game continued to be played in the air with both teams looking to press for openings as the rain showed no signs of abating.
Late pressure saw a driving maul punch a hole before the forwards took the ball on and Keddie bulldozed up close before Wainwright added the final touch on his milestone game.
Scarlets – who had won on two of their last three visits to Rodney Parade – looked to strike before the half-time whistle, but well-drilled home defence held firm for a 10-7 lead at the break.
The waves of heavy rain continued to batter both sets of players, but it was Dragons who settled quicker in the second period with a huge rolling maul gathering pace and powering into the visiting 22.
A penalty was secured as Dragons rumbled up close and Evans added the three. Early changes saw Ryan Woodman and Rhodri Jones introduced with half an hour to go.
Solid defence saw Dragons withhold a period of sustained pressure from Scarlets as they kept them honest on the 22 line and eventually force a handling error.
Leon Brown and Ollie Griffiths were the next to enter the fray and the tighthead introduced himself to the opposition by immediately winning a breakdown penalty.
Benjamin drove through a breakdown to force a handling error from Hardy. But a penalty at the scrum saw Costelow produce a peach of a kick to the corner and Scarlets sensed the moment to strike.
The visitors kept the ball tight to work another penalty and from the resulting scrum they squeezed until the defence finally broke with Ioan Lloyd diving over. Costelow, though, pulled his conversion.
Lloyd then broke from deep and splintered the home defence before Scarlets kept the ball in close and eventually thought they had crept over only for Vaea Fifita to have his effort chalked off by the TMO.
Play came back for an early penalty but inexplicable Costelow again missed a simpler kick at the posts.
A penalty for offside gave Dragons the chance to play in the visiting 22 before back came Scarlets as Dai Flanagan’s men held firm in a tense final few minutes before turnover ball sparked celebrations on and off the field.
Timeline:
05m Evans p 3-0
21m Rogers t Costelow c 3-7
37m Wainwright t Evans c 10-7
49m Evans p 13-7
69m Lloyd t 13-12
Dragons RFC: Cai Evans, Jared Rosser, Aneurin Owen, Harri Ackerman, Ewan Rosser, Will Reed, Rhodri Williams (Blacker 70); Rodrigo Martinez (Jones 50), James Benjamin, Lloyd Fairbrother (Brown 58), Sean Lonsdale, George Nott (Woodman 50), Dan Lydiate, Harri Keddie (Griffiths 58), Aaron Wainwright
Replacements: Brodie Coghlan, Rhodri Jones, Leon Brown, Joe Davies, Ryan Woodman, Ollie Griffiths, Dane Blacker, Corey Baldwin
Scarlets: Ioan Lloyd; Tom Rogers, Joe Roberts, Johnny Williams, Steff Evans; Sam Costelow, Gareth Davies; Kemsley Mathias, Ryan Elias, Sam Wainwright, Alex Craig, Morgan Jones, Ben Williams, Josh Macleod, Vaea Fifita
Replacements: Eduan Swart, Wyn Jones, Joe Jones, Jac Price, Shaun Evans, Kieran Hardy, Jonathan Davies, Ioan Nicholas
Referee: Craig Evans (WRU, 52nd game)
Attendance: 7,617
