Boss Filo Tiatia has told his Dragons to ‘embrace the challenge’ of facing the Emirates Lions in the EPCR Challenge Cup when they battle them at one of his old stomping grounds.
The Men of Gwent face a shootout with the Lions for qualification for the knockout stages at Ellis Park – now known as Emirates Airline Park.
It is an iconic stadium in Johannesburg that needs little introduction to any rugby supporter – where the 1995 Rugby World Cup final took place.
And Interim Head Coach Tiatia is hoping the famous surroundings will inspire his squad after a short turnaround trip to South Africa following the home fixture with Section Paloise last Sunday.
“Ellis Park is a special place. I remember playing there for the first time in 1997 (for the Hurricanes) as a young fella,” he said.
“Some of these players haven’t played here before, so we have had conversations around what to expect and how to embrace the challenge.
“We are looking forward to it. I have played I Johannesburg a few times as a player and this is no different – they are a good team.
“They play fast with a big forward pack. It will be a test. Back home it is pretty cold compared to here, so the boys are enjoying it and acclimatising.
“We have flown in overnight, it was a challenging flight, but most of the boys got some sleep,” he added.
“We arrived on Tuesday, around lunchtime, and had a bit of a recovery and flush.
“The boys are getting some sun and their time zones in place, so we are pretty good.
“It’s a short turnaround so we make the most important things important and get the players equipped with what they need.”
Meanwhile, Tiatia confirmed that captain Angus O’Brien is out of the Challenge Cup qualification shootout after suffering a hand injury in the defeat to Pau at Rodney Parade. O’Brien has not travelled to South Africa as assessment continues on his injury alongside full-back Cai Evans.
Dragons have a total of 13 players back home, a mixture of those on the comeback and those who are set to feature for Pontypool at Llandovery in Super Rygbi Cymru this weekend.
The Ystrad Mynach contingent linked up with those in Johannesburg by Zoom today (Thursday) to stay connected with their teammates and the plans for the Lions fixture.
“Angus has had a few scans, we are waiting on the final medical report, so he won’t be available this week, and it's the same for Cai,” added Tiatia.
“It’s always challenging when you lose your captain. We had Ben Carter as our initial captain and his leadership had grown in the first block and then we lost him and named Angus as our co-captain.
“We also named Aneurin (Owen), Matthew Screech and Harri Keddie as vice-captains and we have a few of those leaders out too.
“It gives other young leaders an opportunity and we are still growing around our leadership.
“It’s a great opportunity for both Lloyd (Evans) and Will (Reed), who have both had good moments in matches. This is an opportunity for them to stake a claim and play well in the 10 jersey.”
Ellis Park is a special place. I remember playing there for the first time in 1997 (for the Hurricanes) as a young fella...
