DEFENCE coach Hendre Martnitz insists he didn't take things personally when the Dragons chased after Shaun Edwards and believes he has prospered thanks to the advice of Wales boss Warren Gatland.

The Rodney Parade region hoped to bring in defence guru Edwards as a consultant this season but the rugby league legend instead signed a deal to work exclusively with the Ospreys along with his national coaching role.

That led to Wales head coach Gatland heading to Ystrad Mynach for a fortnight of training with the Dragons at the end of September.

Marnitz was joined Bernard Jackman's management team last summer but endured a tough first season in the role, not helped by his boss' policy of flooding the side with youth.

The Dragons shipped 672 points and 94 tries in 21 games in the Guinness PRO14, a plight that led to their hunt for help with the South African open to fresh ideas.

"Shaun not coming in was a pity because I feel it was an opportunity to work with the best and learn from him," said Marnitz.

"We were lucky enough that Gats came in, reviewed our systems and gave so much valuable input in terms of looking at our training sessions and tweaking little things.

"The players enjoyed it, I learned loads and it gave us a real lift as a club. We'd gladly have him back whenever he is available.

"I have been in different environments when we have had the privilege of getting experts in. Gats was really good, we had loads of one-on-ones and we had some good cups of coffee together.

"He added loads of value, gave me feedback on things that I did and challenged me on a couple of things. I was over the moon and would love to have him back when the autumn internationals are done."

The Dragons signed 14 players last summer and have shown signs of progress in defence with Jackman declaring himself pleased with their grittiness in Glasgow at the end of last month and their hits in defence against Cardiff Blues.

"We've made big gains from last season but it is still early doors and we have to keep ramping things up, making sure we are accurate and evolve our fundamentals," said Marnitz.

"A lot of young pups are slowly becoming bigger dogs and the boys are getting more belief in the collisions and getting hungrier to get off the defensive line and get into people's faces.

"That will be important against Northampton this weekend, because we are aware of their collisions and size. It's a nice challenge for us."

The Dragons entertain the Saints tomorrow (kick-off 7.30pm) on the back of a bonus-point win at Timisoara Saracens on Saturday.

The rapid turnaround for the clash against their English rivals, who endured a home drubbing at the hands of Clermont Auvergne, has stretched the region.

"It was a long trip to Romania and a long Sunday back with a couple of hours on the plane, couple of hours on the bus," said Marnitz.

"The boys recovered on Monday and we had a very heavy day on Tuesday, which was mentally tough because we only have a couple of days to put in the work. We put them through the mill because on today we can only tick off a few boxes.

"There is a lot of mental prep and a lot of work done in a short space of time to make sure we can crack on this weekend. We had to up the ante and not waste time, because it is of the essence this week."

The Dragons name their team at midday.