BACKS coach Shaun Connor says new recruit Sarel Pretorius has hit the ground running at Newport Gwent Dragons, writes Chris Kirwan.

The South African, who has scored more tries in Super Rugby than any other scrum-half, has headed to Rodney Parade from the Cheetahs.

The 31-year-old is unlikely to feature in tomorrow's first pre-season friendly against Nottingham at the region's Ystrad Mynach training base as he only linked up with the squad at the end of July.

But Connor has praised the way that Pretorius has fitted in as they look to replace Jonathan Evans, who has joined Bath, and Richie Rees, who will combine being academy skills coach with playing for Cross Keys.

"Sarel has been excellent and as is the way with good foreign signings, he has added to the environment," said the former fly-half.

"He has been really good with the young 9s Luc Jones and Owen Davies, as has Charlie Davies (the 25-year-old signing from Wasps).

"That type of person makes the environment what it is and I'd imagine it has been easier to bed in for him with (his fellow South Africans) Brok Harris, Rynard Landman and Carl Meyer here.

"The key thing is bringing in the right people. Lyn and Kingsley (Jones, director of rugby and head coach) spent a lot of time on recruitment and we certainly feel Sarel is the right fit."

Evans, meanwhile, hopes a move over the border to Bath can lead to him catching the eye of Warren Gatland.

The 23-year-old from Bargoed was unlucky to miss out on a place on Wales' tour to Japan in 2013 and hopes that getting the nod at the Rec ahead of Niko Matawalu and Chris Cook can fuel his international ambitions.

"If I can get the number nine jersey at a top English club then who knows, perhaps I can turn some heads among the Wales selectors," he said.

"It could certainly raise my profile but my first job is to get that number nine jersey. It's not going to be easy given the competition but that has to be my aim and then who knows what can happen then."

- Newport have added another option at scrum-half ahead of the coming season with the signing of Aeron Bidgood from Penallta.

The 20-year-old will compete for starts with Owen Davies and Jonny Lewis, who will both feature for Newport Gwent Dragons in the Singha Premiership 7s on Saturday rather than the Black and Ambers in their pre-season trip to Rosslyn Park.