Dragons and Wales star Ross Moriarty set for lengthy lay-off

The 27-year-old looks set for a lengthy spell on the sidelines after being stretchered off at Kings Park in Friday’s 51-3 hammering by the Sharks.

The back row forward’s left leg got stuck in the turf when he made a tackle in the 22 and he screamed in pain before receiving lengthy treatment on the pitch.

He will fly back to the UK with his Dragons teammates before the injury is fully assessed early next week once the swelling goes down.

However, the 54-times capped forward will miss a reunion with his former club Gloucester in the European Challenge Cup on Saturday.

It is also highly likely that Moriarty will miss the summer tour to South Africa and the start of Wales’ build up to the World Cup in 2022/23.

His loss will also be a crushing blow for the Dragons in a United Rugby Championship run-in featuring four Welsh derbies, even though they are blessed with a strong back row.

It is Moriarty’s second serious injury of the season after he suffered a shoulder injury against New Zealand in the autumn that needed surgery.

Dragons back rower Ross Moriarty is carted off the field in Durban

“Ross wanted to get back playing [for the Dragons after the Six Nations] and he’s probably one of a handful of players who can really impose himself physically on a South African side,” said Ryan.

“I know he was really looking forward to this and into next week. Let’s wait and see. We don’t have many bodies like Ross so when we lose him the impact is huge.”

His fellow Wales back rower Aaron Wainwright is likely to come into the side to face Gloucester after he was a waterboy in Durban, with captain Harri Keddie, Taine Basham and Ben Fry the other leading back row options.

The Dragons conceded a half-century for the third game in a row after the Sharks ran in four tries and were awarded a pair of penalty tries for deliberate knock-ons.

Those offences led to fly-half Josh Lewis and scrum-half Lewis Jones being sinbinned and a third yellow card was shown at the death when Fry downed Springboks captain Siya Kolisi with a no-arms tackle.

The Sharks destroyed the Dragons in the scrum and won the collisions, much like the Bulls did when romping to victory in Pretoria six days earlier.

Werner Kok runs in the Sharks' third try (Image: Huw Evans Agency)

“In the last two weeks we have had an education in power,” said Ryan. “The basics of the game are based around power and at the moment there is a huge gulf between ourselves and South African opposition.

“There hasn’t been a lack of effort or detail around what we are trying to achieve but we can’t hold a scrum and that can march us up the field, then the fatigue levels and error rates are enormous come the last 20 minutes.

“Collectively we can’t answer the power that is coming at us and that is a reality check for us and for Wales going into the three Tests in June.

“There is a gulf, and you can’t have little trick plays that hide a gulf in power.”