THE Dragons finally enjoyed a win in the Guinness PRO14 when beating Southern Kings 27-22 at Rodney Parade. Here are the talking points from the Rodney Parade clash…

Streak over

The last league triumph was against the Kings in September, 2017 so one expected Dragons supporters to be sporting wide smiles after a long-awaited success.

However, the manner of the victory meant that there was a subdued atmosphere at Rodney Parade after the match.

It could quite easily have been a first away win for the Kings, yet the Dragons got the job done in the final quarter and one hopes it’s a catalyst.

It is highly unlikely that they will triumph at Leinster next weekend but Zebre in round four is another must-win.

The end of the 17-match streak without success is a weight off the Dragons’ shoulders and one hopes that it settles the squad down for the rest of the first PRO14 block.

Wastefulness

Once again the Dragons failed to grasp a raft of chances in enemy territory – even try number two came after a botched five-metre lineout.

Trips to the 22 went pointless thanks to wrong options taken or costly errors when close to the white line.

There was Leon Brown’s knock-on when reaching over, the turnover on Tyler Morgan from the final play of the first half, the jackal on Ross Moriarty five metres out when the score was 17-10 in the second half.

Against the top teams the Dragons cannot let such opportunities slip.

Back row dynamism

At the risk of upsetting the glut of other 6, 7 and 8s on the Dragons’ books, this is the best combo.

It was an encouraging first outing for the triumvirate of Aaron Wainwright, Ollie Griffiths and Ross Moriarty with the high-profile number eight making his first outing since his summer move from Gloucester.

The Lions tourist put in a big shift for 80 minutes and his big moments will become more regular with match sharpness but it was Griffiths that stood out.

If the flanker stays fit then he will be with Wales this autumn, even though Warren Gatland is blessed with options.

Bench impact

All summer we have heard that the Dragons have more depth than ever before and that was shown in the closing stages.

Hooker Richard Hibbard is suited to the 20-minute blast as a replacement for Elliot Dee while lock Brandon Nansen is also a big impact sub while bedding in at a new club.

Scrum-half Tavis Knoyle showed experience and organisation late on while props Ryan Bevington and Lloyd Fairbrother had half-hour shifts.

That there are quality players in the squad that would love jerseys 16 to 23, let alone places in the XV, shows that the Dragons are in a stronger position than in recent years.