NEWPORT Gwent Dragons may not have had the biggest Wales contingent over the years but they've been blessed with some wonderful stories.

Further proof of sport's ability to be as cruel as it can be inspirational came last week when Andrew Coombs was forced to admit defeat in his bid to return from a serious knee injury.

To hang up the boots at the age of 31 with a few good years left in the tank is harsh but he has the determination required to put up with most things that come his way, as he has shown on the field in the colours of Newport then the Dragons.

He will know that there are more important things in life and the lock can take great comfort from achieving what seemed impossible when released by the Rodney Parade region.

South Wales Argus:

He showed tenacity to earn a deserved return to the professional ranks and transferred the snarl that saw him lead from the front as the Black and Ambers' number eight and captain to the Dragons' second row.

Such aggression and awkwardness in some regional derbies caught the eye of Wales, leading to his call-up for the Six Nations in 2013.

Squad back-up surely? Nope. He answered doubts about whether he could make the leap from regional rugby to the Test scene with some terrific displays to help Wales win the title.

Coombs went on to win 10 caps and on a personal level seeing him and former Cross Keys hooker Lloyd Burns represent their country are among my top moments as a sports reporter.

A pair of men who I used to speak to when ringing Premiership captains for weekend previews (Coombs a computer software salesman and Burns a bricklayer) went on to win a Six Nations and score a try at a World Cup.

Alas both men had to retire prematurely and unlike Jamie Vardy, Leicester City's own unlikely hero, there will be no Hollywood films about their rapid rises but they carried themselves with dignity, perhaps grounded and grateful thanks to making it after a spell out in the real world.

So, it was interesting to read a piece on Vardy's England teammate Joe Hart after their calamitous Euro 2016 while on holiday last week.

After the goalkeeper made another clanger in the loss to Iceland, the Independent's Ian Herbert slammed the "extraneous preening and attitude which tells you that this is an individual who has forgotten the elementary part of his professional role".

He continued: "The same unpleasant strutting is there in the interviews with him: not the ones on television, in the full glare, but those behind the scenes where he, as one of the senior players of this England side, is asked to articulate some sense of leadership.

"It's always too much trouble for Hart. You know not to hold your breath waiting for something intelligent because he doesn't want to give it."

Herbert's piece was written the day after Coombs had announced his retirement and it made me think of the reaction to the Dragons lock's media debut ahead of the Six Nations opener with Ireland in Cardiff.

Coombs may have had a lack of respect for reputations on the field but he received plaudits from journalist colleagues for being so polite, engaging and articulate off it.

That says a lot for the man and he leaves a big void for the Dragons, who will miss his drive, determination and aggression out in the middle and leadership qualities in the changing room and on the training paddock.

But that's their problem and while Coombs comes to terms with life without playing rugby he will always have that moment on February 2, 2013 when he belted out the national anthem at the Millennium Stadium before taking on a Brian O'Driscoll-inspired Ireland... not to mention a certain 30-3 a few weeks later.

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THERE is a school of thought that fixture release day is no big deal, you play everybody twice (although inexplicably not in the Principality Premiership in the coming campaign) so it doesn’t really matter.

But next Wednesday could well be vital for the hopes of Newport Gwent Dragons when they learn their schedule for the Guinness Pro12.

There can be no sugar-coating the fact that the league campaign was a disaster in 2015/16 and nobody at the organisation has pretended otherwise.

The Dragons won just four games, finished just two points above 11th-placed Zebre and six ahead of bottom club Treviso while the gap to the next team up, Edinburgh, was a whopping 28 points (more than double their own tally of 26).

The men from Rodney Parade lost 10 straight Pro12 games at the end of last term and their supporters, who through the years have heard more false promises than a Brexit leave voter, need to be reassured on the field that things will be better in 2016/17.

So a relatively kind start to enable Kingsley Jones’ men to hit the ground running, wipe the slate clean to an extent and build confidence would do the power of good.

A league campaign in which they are at least challenging their three Welsh rivals and in the mix for a rare top-half finish is essential but the Dragons’ chances of another enjoyable European Challenge Cup campaign also appear to be strong.

A draw against Worcester, who are likely to be more bothered with Aviva Premiership matters, and former European champions Brive, who have recently shown distain for the second tier competition given the size of the Top 14, is pretty favourable.

Russians Enisei-STM certainly won’t be easy – they won home games with Brive and Newcastle last year – but getting one of the two qualifiers is a result.

Last season’s jaunt to the semi-finals, and the stunning win at Gloucester in the last eight, merely papered over cracks.

Knockout rugby shouldn’t be beyond the Dragons for a third season on the spin but this time it must be combined with some Pro12 fight.