BUCHAREST was absolutely freezing on the first weekend of December but the heat was on the Newport Gwent Dragons management team.

The first three months of the season had been hugely disappointing after a summer of optimism and the Rodney Parade region faced a crunch tie in the European Rugby Challenge Cup.

Had they come unstuck against the Romanian minnows, regardless of the perishing conditions and boggy pitch, then one feared that Lyn Jones and Kingsley Jones would be in danger of being shown the door.

Fast forward two-and-a-half months and things are a lot, lot brighter at the Dragons.

They came through that tricky encounter at the small ground next to Steaua Bucharest's rather more salubrious Ghencea Stadium and have gone on to win eight of their last 11.

There is no doubt that the Dragons, aided by their treatment room becoming less crowded, have made great strides... yet tell that to the fans that saw them spluttering against London Welsh a fortnight ago.

That LV= Cup encounter was very much a means to an end for the region and served to blow away the cobwebs ahead of their superb win against Guinness Pro12 champions Leinster, their first ever triumph in the Irish capital.

Dragons fans felt such pride that their team upset the odds at the Royal Dublin Society yet have frequently been exasperated by performances at Rodney Parade.

Earning a home European quarter-final and shock away wins at Stade Francais, Cardiff Blues, Newcastle and Leinster has given credence to Lyn Jones' claims that they are on the right track.

There is certainly a brighter mood at their Ystrad Mynach training base and last week there was a genuine belief that they would be victorious on their trip to Dublin; they were embracing the challenge of becoming the first ever Dragons side to win there rather than talking about giving a good account of themselves.

The players know that they are improving individually and they know that they are improving collectively.

At the start of the campaign they were a tad shapeless but now they look determined in defence, stronger up front and sharper in attack. There is still plenty of kicking – and if they receive the ball in their own half then you know that an up and under is imminent – but watch enough rugby over any given weekend and you will see that they are certainly not alone in that.

They look much more of a team, and this summer won't be quite as turbulent as the last in terms of exits, but now they need to give the Dragons fans reason to believe in them. They need to produce a performance or two to show the punters that shell out for season tickets that they are making progress.

The next three weeks sees an away trip to Zebre sandwiched by home games against Connacht and Ulster.

A trio of wins would not only give great hope to finishing above their rivals from Cardiff but would show the supporters that haven't been lucky enough to see their super away performances that they are a side on the up.

The Dragons will then have to contend with a three-week lull while the LV= Cup concludes before another mammoth fortnight – Treviso away and then the Blues quarter-final.

The region have won five games and lost six on their own turf this season. That needs to improve if their growth is to be noticed by the people that matter the most.