IT couldn’t be tougher for Newport Gwent Dragons - they open the season in the newly named RaboDirect Pro 12 League with away games against top Irish teams Munster and Leinster, writes Robin Davey.

They had asked for their first two fixtures to be away as a precautionary measure in view of the opening of the new Rodney Parade stand, but could hardly have expected both Munster and Leinster to be the opposition.

Though they will be without a host of top players who will be with Ireland at the World Cup, the Dragons promise to be below strength as well, with possibly five players in the Wales squad.

But the two Irish giants possess great strength in depth and Munster, who the Dragons visit on the weekend of September 2-4, won the league title comfortably last season though they were regularly without their leading players.

Leinster, who host the Dragons on the weekend of September 9-11, are the Heineken Cup champions and though Brian O’Driscoll & Co will be missing they still represent a formidable challenge. And to make it a hat-trick of visits to Ireland the Dragons go to Galway at the end of September to face Connacht who put 40 points on them in the opening match of last season.

The only home game for the Dragons in the opening month of the season is against Aironi from September 16-18.

It is a match they seem sure to win on their first appearance at the redeveloped stadium after the Italians finished comfortably the bottom team last season.

“We requested the first two games to be away, but to go to Ireland three times in September is difficult,” admitted Dragons director of rugby Robert Beale.

“But we have to go there some time and last year we had a spell of five games in a row on the road including a demanding trip to Aironi but coped with it.

“We will relish the challenge of going to Munster for our first game though it’s be a great challenge and a great test.”

In another crucial period the Dragons will face their three Welsh rivals over the Christmas and new year period.

They take on Cardiff Blues away on December 23 or Christmas Eve, they host the Scarlets on New Year’s Eve or New Year’s Day followed by the Ospreys at home the weekend of January 6-8.