Connacht fall to Dragons after one of their worst performances in years
Dragons had been without a league win since September 2024. Pic: ©INPHO/Mike Jones
Connacht will head into Christmas and two tough derby games on the back of one of their worst defeats in years after going down to a Dragons side who had gone 23 games in the URC without winning a match.
But the Newport side were full value for their win at Rodney Parade as they celebrated their first league win since the opening weekend of last season and recorded their biggest score at the venue in 21 years.
Connacht were hoping for momentum heading into two tough derby games against Ulster and Leinster but will now face Christmas on the back of one of their worst displays in years as a near full strength side was taken apart by a team without a league win since September 2024.
For a time, after conceding 48 points without reply, it seemed that they were heading for a record defeat in the competition but they rallied and three tries in the closing 15 minutes when the game was done salvaged a try bonus point.
Connacht, despite losing winger Shayne Bolton to a leg injury which he suffered kicking the ball, made a bright start and hit the front after ten minutes when new signing Sam Gilbert scored his first try in his fourth appearance for the side.
The opportunity came from a fine break from deep by flanker Sean O’Brien and after Dragons’ back rower Ryan Woodman was pinged, Connacht went to the corner and several phases later, after Paul Boyle came closest to scoring, out-half Josh Ioane fed Gilbert whose angled run inside got him over before he added the conversion.
But Connacht didn’t build on that score and instead found themselves penned back at the other end and Dragons deservedly got back on level terms after 17 minutes after a surging run by No.8 Harrison Keddie led to a sustained bout of pressure and hooker Oli Burrows caught the defence napping to tap a penalty and score under the posts.
Connacht hit back and opted to go for the left corner with a penalty in front of the posts but Ioane somehow kicked the ball dead while going for the left corner and from there to the break it was one disaster after another and the Dragons punished them.
The Newport side hit the front after 25 minutes when a lineout ball was knocked down and bounced high before scrum-half Che Hope gathered and sprinted through to score from 25 metres with the conversion making it 14-7.
That fired the Dragons and with Rio Dyer causing havoc down the left, they extended their lead by cranking up the tempo and the other winger Jared Rosser scored in the right corner while playing another advantage. Angus O’Brien landed his third conversion from the right to make it 21-7 eight minutes from the break.
Bundee Aki was held up and turned over as Connacht attacked from a lineout and then with the clock in the red they got a relieving penalty inside their own half and while they won the lineout several phases they were turned over when Dave Heffernan’s pass was intercepted by Fine Inisi and while he was stopped short, Dragons went to the corner with a couple of penalties and were rewarded with a penalty try when No.8 Paul Boyle, having slipped, was binned for bringing down the maul and the Dragons went in to a boisterous reception from the home crowd with the try bonus in the bag.
Stuart Lancaster drafted in four replacements at the break but one of them, Josh Murphy, was pinged in his first contact and O’Brien extended the lead to 31-7 from 40 metres on the right after 43 minutes. He added another penalty three minutes later after Chay Mullins was penalised.
It got worse for Connacht when Dyer went around another replacement Ben Murphy to score their fifth try but there was a brief reprieve for the visitors when Thomas Young’s try was scratched for a forward pass.
Connacht salvaged some pride when captain Cian Prendergast finished off two tries to cut the gap to 48-21 and bring them within a try of a bonus point with seven minutes remaining and a late surge yielded a bonus point when Sean Jansen got over in the 82nd minute.
Tries: C Hope (2), O Burrows, J Rosser, R Dyer, penalty try. Cons: A O’Brien (5). Pens: O’Brien (2).
Tries: C Prendergast (2), S Gilbert, S Jansen. Cons: Gilbert (4).
A O’Brien (cc) (H Anderson 64); J Rosser, F Inisi, A Owen (J Westwood 64), R Dyer; T de Beer, C Hope; R Martinez (J Morris 54), O Burrows (G Roberts 29), R Hunt (C Dlamini 56); L Douglas (S Lewis-Hughes 56), B Carter (cc); R Woodman, H Beddall, H Keddie (Tomas Young 56).
S Gilbert; C Mullins, C Forde, B Aki, S Bolton (H Gavin 6); J Ioane (J Carty 68), C Blade (B Murphy half-time); J Duggan (D Buckley half-time), D Heffernan (D Tierney-Martin 63), S Illo (F Bealham half-time); D Murray, N Murray (J Murphy half-time); C Prendergast, S O’Brien (S Jansen 54), P Boyle.
Ruairidh Campbell (Scotland).
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