Dragons still searching for their killer touch (From South Wales Argus)

Dragons still searching for their killer touch

10:10am Monday 20th February 2012 in Dragons

GIVEN the way the campaign has gone so far it seems churlish to lambast Newport Gwent Dragons for the failure to tack a bonus point onto a victory.

The 21-10 win against Edinburgh was only the region’s fourth in the RaboDirect Pro12 this season so it was very much job done on Saturday night.

Yet it was a success that gave an indication of why they are currently struggling near the bottom of the table rather than attempting to improve on last season’s seventh-place finish.

The Dragons played some good rugby in patches and created enough openings to have made it a drubbing against a pretty woeful side. But they could easily have been sweating on their victory in the closing stages had the Scottish club not done an impression of their national side in butchering a simple three on two with 12 minutes left.

Such profligacy was rife throughout the game, particularly from the hosts, and it was apt that the final act was a Dragons knock-on in the Edinburgh 22.

Perhaps it was the state of the league table that led to the Dragons lacking a killer instinct; with a few more successes under their belt maybe they will have the belief to be more cut-throat.

But if they are suffering from mental fragility then a ‘handle with care’ sticker should be whacked onto their jerseys as a reminder.

The Dragons made 13 trips to the Scottish side’s 22 but converted only two of them into points.

It was encouraging and frustrating in the same breath, and if one man summed that up it was outside-centre Andy Tuilagi, who added real oomph to the attack yet too often spoilt good work.

The centre caused real problems for Edinburgh and frequently got over the gain line but he seemingly cannot resist an offload. Great when they come off, not so good when the ball keeps hitting the deck.

Tuilagi certainly adds an extra dimension to the Dragons attack – he carries hard and his large presence should open up space for the back three – but at times he should just run hard and set a target for his back row to provide quick ball.

But the Samoan is certainly showing signs of improvement, as are a pair of burgeoning young talents in the pack.

Tighthead prop Nathan Buck is doing superbly in his first season in regional rugby and his strong carrying was a prominent feature, while Jevon Groves worked incredibly hard in his unfavoured position of lock.

They played well in a clash that was all about the win, just as it will be on Sunday when up against basement outfit Aironi.

It was a success that meant a lot to the Dragons, players and coaches alike.

On the touchline defence chief Rob Appleyard had the energy of a schoolchild who had spent all half-term eating Haribo and swigging cola.

There was an Italian referee out in the middle and plenty of Mediterranean gestures from Appleyard on the sideline, remonstrating for penalties and even at one stage doing a 'Mancini' and waving an imaginary card.

That was a sign of it being a must-win encounter but all that stress and anxiety would have been gone by half-time had the Dragons taken their chances and put the game to bed.

In many ways it was a first half shaped by how the sides coped with yellow cards.

Edinburgh were leading 3-0 when ref Alan Falzone sent Dragons number eight Gavin Thomas, yet it was the hosts who won that 10-minute spell 6-0.

And they then punished Gunners lock Sean Cox when he was sent to the cooler, scoring the first of their two tries to take command.

The Dragons started poorly but worked their way into the game, and should have scored long before scrum-half Joe Bedford dotted the ball on the line from close range on 24 minutes after a long, patient attack.

His score was followed 10 minutes later by a try for France-bound wing Aled Brew on his 100th appearance for the region, full-back Martyn Thomas providing the assist with lovely hands to expose a defensive error by Edinburgh wing Sep Visser.

That made it 18-3 and another five points for Brew should have followed before half-time only for the usually calm Ashley Smith to throw a forward pass in the 22 when his wing had a run-in down the left.

The second half continued in a similar vein with the Dragons making plenty of trips to the Edinburgh 22 only to come away empty-handed.

Jason Tovey booted a penalty to take his personal tally to 11 and close in on Ceri Sweeney’s regional points record before the Gunners livened up in the last quarter, albeit aided by some wild Dragons play.

First they were gifted a five-metre scrum when replacement Lewis Robling was forced to dot down over his own line following a crazy pass way over his head by wing Adam Hughes.

The Scots took their opportunity with lock Grant Gilchrist barging over, and they should have been back within a score when Tovey’s attempted flick in the Edinburgh 22 resulted in a hack down field and the botched three on two.

Had the visitors been more calm then it could have been a different story, but thankfully the Dragons head to Aironi with the aim of winning back-to-back Pro12 games for the first time this season. Four points would be more than enough on the road.