NEWPORT Gwent Dragons have been urged to give a shot to Ebbw Vale lock Ashley Sweet or run the risk of losing a bright prospect to another club.

The 23-year-old, who was in the same Wales Under-20s side as Sam Warburton, Leigh Halfpenny, Dan Biggar and Jonathan Davies, has become the Steelmen’s talisman over the last three seasons.

His form led the Dragons to invite him to train with them last week but he is also on the radar of clubs in the English Championship and has been to look at some of their set-ups.

However, it was nearly one of the Dragons’ regional rivals that secured the services of the 6ft 5in lock from Pontypool.

Sweet was poised to sign a deal with the Scarlets last summer only for the deal to collapse when Nigel Davies left for Gloucester.

One of his former mentors has urged the Dragons to learn from a narrow escape and offer the lock a deal, giving him the chance to prove he has the physicality required to thrive as a full-timer.

“Ashley is a great kid that just needs a shot and for somebody to believe in him,” said Neil Edwards, a former Wales A second row, who was head coach at Ebbw Vale until moving to Neath last month.

“I have no doubt that he has what it takes to be a professional rugby player – he works hard, is hungry to make that step up and his head is in the right place.

“Ashley is far from the finished article and going full-time would only accelerate his development.

“Maybe because he is in the Championship he isn’t quite as noticeable but I don’t think that anybody who has seen him play would question his ability to make the step up.

“Frustratingly Ebbw Vale are not in the Premiership (Edwards was at the helm for successive Division One East title wins) but it has been the right club for him.”

Sweet came through the Dragons Academy but Edwards, who made five appearances for the region, believes he has made great strides in the three seasons he has spent at Eugene Cross Park.

“He has made improvements in terms of his conditioning, the technical aspects of being a lock but most importantly he has grown up as a man,” said Edwards.

“Ashley moved around in the early part of his career (playing at Cross Keys and Cardiff) but he is mentally tougher now. His performances show that, and he has benefited from settling down at Ebbw Vale and learning the position.

“Robert Sidoli and Adam Jones have been great players but they can’t go on forever and in Ashley the Dragons have a player that can come in and learn from them.

“It would be a real pity if he went elsewhere in Wales, or to a Championship club in England, because he could be a great addition to the Dragons squad.”

The Dragons have a history of turning Premiership back row forwards into regional players – Andrew Coombs (Newport), Jevon Groves (Cross Keys), Darren Waters (Pontypridd) and Hywel Stoddart (Newport) are all currently on their books after making the step up from the semi-pros.

However, that success has not been repeated in the second row to the extent that Coombs and Groves have operated as emergency locks.