Dragons set to tinker with winning side for derby in Cardiff

The Rodney Parade region will head to the capital in high spirits thanks to their last-gasp 22-20 success against the men from Llanelli.

The Dragons repeated their Judgement Day victory against the west Walians thanks to Sam Davies' drop goal in the 80th minute.

They now face a five-day turnaround for the Arms Park, as do their hosts after their win at the Ospreys, with director of rugby Dean Ryan poised to tinker with a winning formula.

He is likely to rotate his front row while Cory Hill could return to the second row with his Wales teammate Ross Moriarty starting at number eight.

The Dragons hand may be forced in the back three after wing Owen Jenkins suffered a minor ankle injury against the Scarlets but Jared Rosser is close to a comeback.

A leg injury means the speedster from Abersychan is yet to feature in 2019/20 but he played a part in the pre-match preparations at Rodney Parade.

Ryan could also mix up his midfield after Tyler Morgan impressed as a replacement in the second half last weekend while Tom Griffiths and Connor Edwards are other options to the starting combination of Jack Dixon and Adam Warren.

After rain made the going heavy at Rodney Parade, the Dragons now prepare for the plastic pitch at the Arms Park.

"It's a faster track and that's something that we've got to look at," said Ryan. "We played on one in Worcester a few weeks back and the speed of playing the game is different for us.

"The five-day turnaround is going to be tough for both sides so we will be making changes and bringing in some fresh legs with energy."

Ryan was pleased with his side's resilience and maturity against a Scarlets side likely to be in the mix for the PRO14 play-offs.

Just like against Worcester in the home European Challenge Cup clash, the Dragons took the spoils in an arm-wrestle in grim conditions with Davies slotting the drop goal just minutes after missing an effort from the tee.

"I am just really pleased for the lads," he said. "It was one of those games where there wasn't a huge amount of rugby to be played and you just have to stay in it.

"I thought that the miss from Sam was going to come back to bite us, or even go back further with a missed opportunity down the left flank when we should have got in.

"Over the last three or four weeks the group has grown a lot from experiences, and we have played a lot on wet nights.

"You just have to stay in those games, wait and have a good set piece; once again I thought that the entry of the lads off the bench, every position, added impetus rather than detracting.

"That is a massive positive for us because it keeps us all the way until the end, and it mattered on Saturday night."

The Dragons have now won back-to-back PRO14 clashes with the Scarlets and beat the Ospreys in Newport last December.

They now hunt a first success against the Blues since winning in Cardiff on Boxing Day, 2014.