IT is a sad sign of the times that the Scarlets winning a Heineken Cup game at Harlequins was trumpeted so loudly.

The men from Llanelli produced a high quality performance and some of their rugby was a joy to watch, combining wonderful skills with grunt at the set piece thanks to former Dragons forwards coach Danny Wilson.

But why should we be surprised that a Welsh region can go to the Stoop and triumph against a side that sit seventh in the Aviva Premiership with a record of played five, won two lost three?

Insufficient funding + an inferiority complex + English hype = feelings of doom ahead of games against rivals from across the border.

It's a formula that Newport Gwent Dragons must conquer ahead of Saturday's short trip to Bath.

There is little doubt that this is their biggest test of the campaign so far against a side that have started the season well.

But so have the Dragons – why shouldn't they go to the West Country and emerge victorious? Why can't they do what the Scarlets did in London?

It's time for the region to dump the baggage that has hindered them on their RaboDirect Pro12 travels to Edinburgh (who were awful) and Munster (who are good but not the side they were).

The Dragons have their limitations and Bath's strong-scrummaging props Davey Wilson and Paul James will have licked their lips after seeing a forecast of drizzle on Saturday afternoon.

The English outfit will start as favourites on Saturday and, after beating Bordeaux away and winning all of their group games in 2012/13, are tipped to top Pool Two. They will also be hyped courtesy of the Aviva Premiership PR machine that turns the ordinary into the stunning.

There is no doubt that Bath have talent in their ranks but rather than getting bogged down in why the Dragons can't win let's focus on why they can.

Lyn Jones' men have come on leaps and bounds since burgling a pre-season victory against Bath in August.

They boast match winners in the ranks in the shape of Toby Faletau, Netani Talei, Jason Tovey, Hallam Amos and Ross Wardle while Lewis Evans and Richie Rees will want to press for inclusion in the Wales squad for the autumn internationals.

They have played with tenacity and have come through bruising encounters against the Scarlets and Ulster – two of last season's Pro12 semi-finalists – with flying colours.

While a bonus point would keep the Dragons right in it ahead of the January return fixture, don't treat a trip to Bath like mission impossible.

I'm not saying it's going to be easy but they're heading to the Rec, not Clermont Auvergne's Stade Marcel Michelin.

A famous Irish bookmaker currently prices the Dragons at 66/1 to lift the Amlin Challenge Cup at Cardiff Arms Park in May.

They believe it's as likely that Simon Cowell will have a baby called X or that the UK will win next year's Eurovision or that Silvio Berlusconi will play the lead role of Silvio Berlusconi in the first film biopic released in UK. Oh, and they think it's more likely that a Yeti will be discovered before 2020.

The quarter-final arrival of three Heineken Cup big guns in the Amlin makes it wise to not book the open-top bus just yet but there is no reason why the Dragons can't slash their odds this weekend.