NEWPORT Gwent Dragons could be going head-to-head with All Blacks great Conrad Smith, Samoan try machine David Smith and mercurial England fly-half Danny Cipriani in the European Rugby Challenge Cup.

The Rodney Parade side have been drawn with Pau, Castres and Sale Sharks in Pool Two of the tournament.

The Dragons were semi-finalists last season and, with the Top 14 undoubtedly a priority for the French duo, their hopes of going at least one step further are likely to be shaped by their encounters with their English opponents.

They will see head coach Kingsley Jones attempting to mastermind the downfall of his former employers after spending seven highly successful years in the north west of England, helping the Sharks win the Aviva Premiership and Challenge Cup.

Sale finished seventh in England last season and will start as Pool Two favourites while they will need to win in France at least once if they are to make the knockout stages.

They face Castres, French champions in two years ago but who narrowly avoided relegation last season, and Pau, who have been promoted back to the Top 14.

The former will boast powerhouse Samoan wing David Smith, Scotland lock Richie Gray and France scrum-half Rory Kockott in their ranks while Pau have recruited All Blacks Conrad Smith and Colin Slade.

Whether the big guns feature in Europe will become clear in the autumn but the Dragons know from experience that French sides have formidable depth.

They did the double over a much-changed Stade Francais side last season but the Parisians, who won the Top 14 title last weekend, still fielded a number of international stars in a strong side including Morne Steyn, Digby Ioane, Krisnan Inu, Julien Dupuy and Paul Williams.

The prize for the team that lifts the trophy at the Grand Stade de Lyon on Friday, May 13 is a place in the 2016/17 Champions Cup as the upcoming World Cup means there is no time for play-offs between sides in the Guinness Pro12, Aviva Premiership and Top 14.

Challenge Cup groups

Pool One: Connacht, Brive, Newcastle, Enisei-STM

Pool Two: Sale, Newport Gwent Dragons, Castres, Pau

Pool Three: Montpellier, Harlequins, Cardiff Blues, Calvisano

Pool Four: La Rochelle, Gloucester, Zebre, Worcester

Pool Five: Edinburgh, London Irish, Grenoble, Agen

European weekends

Round 1: 12/13/14/15 November

Round 2: 19/20/21/22 November

Round 3: 10/11/12/13 December

Round 4: 17/18/19/20 December

Round 5: 14/15/16/17 January 2016

Round 6: 21/22/23/24 January 2016

Quarter-finals: 7/8/9/10 April 2016

Semi-finals: 22/23/24 April 2016

Finals: 13/14 May 2016