IT’S a crucial game against Castres at Rodney Parade tonight – win and we are on the brink of qualifying for the European Rugby Challenge Cup for the second season in a row.

That would be a big achievement after being drawn in a tough group with Sale, Castres and Pau; unlike previous seasons when we have had the likes of Bucharest, Mogliano and Cavalieri Prato there has been no weaker team.

We haven’t been used to fighting it out for qualification too often over the years but hopefully we can use the experience of last season to get over the line.

In round five we headed to Newcastle for what was pretty much a winner-takes-all game but we went there without fear and with the intent to play.

That paid off and we not only won in the North East but left with a bonus point before finishing the job against Stade Francais in round six to earn a home quarter against Cardiff Blues.

We need that same positive approach against Castres tonight.

They are a strong side and beat us 32-29 in November but our attitude is key – think you are going to lose and more often than not you will be right, think like a winner and you will win.

Last weekend’s scheduled Guinness Pro12 game against Ulster in Belfast was postponed so we are refreshed for tonight’s game and the six-day turnaround for our final game against Sale in Salford.

I’m back fit after suffering a rib injury against the Blues in the festive derby and I can’t wait to get back out there.

We’ve managed to watch some footage of Castres but you have to be careful about reading too much into their performances in the Top 14 – French teams play totally differently in European rugby.

There’s always a danger of paralysis by analysis but it is vital in terms of defence against their set piece and first-phase play. As always though, we have mainly focused on ourselves.

We haven’t been as consistent as we would have liked this season and obviously suffered two derby disappointments over the festive period.

We’ve let ourselves down against Welsh rivals so far, losing to the Scarlets earlier in the season and then to Cardiff Blues and the Ospreys. I don’t think we’ve played anywhere near our potential in all three games.

In the end getting a losing bonus point wasn’t a disaster from the Ospreys game but our performance wasn’t great, especially in the first half.

Hopefully we can string together a pair of strong performances to qualify in Europe, boosting our confidence and providing a springboard for our Pro12 form.

IT will be a poignant evening at Rodney Parade tonight as it’s the first game since Dragons education officer Phil James passed away.

I can genuinely say that Phil was one of the people who helped me become a professional rugby player – he coached me at Newport District Under-11s at Bettws Civil Service and without him maybe I wouldn’t be playing at this level.

He was really influential at the Dragons, where he had worked in the community department for 13 years, but more importantly he was a top bloke and he will be sorely missed by all of us.