How do Dragons take next step after turnaround?

With the pain of a narrow Challenge Cup exit in Montpellier still raw, Dragons co-captain Angus O'Brien pledged to use the semi-final defeat as "fuel".

The immediate task for the Rodney Parade club is to finish a dramatically improved season strongly before picking up where they left off in 2026-27.

It has been a turnaround that few saw coming when Dragons, who finished bottom of the United Rugby Championship (URC) last season, hit a new low in December.

Filo Tiatia's side were thrashed at previously winless Perpignan in round one of the Challenge Cup, then trailed Lyon 21-6 in the final quarter in Newport.

Three tries and O'Brien's conversion ended a 14-month wait for a victory and proved to be a turning point.

It started a five-match unbeaten run on home soil and led to qualification for the knockout stages of Europe, where Dragons won on the road at Stade Francais and Zebre.

Montpellier was a step too far but progress has undoubtedly been made, and now the challenge is to keep going.

"Looking at the whole squad in a huddle at the end of the game, I guarantee they will have been referencing how they finish with their best foot forward, because they have turned the corner since Christmas," said former Dragons scrum-half Richie Rees on BBC Radio Wales.

Coping with greater expectations

Dragons will lose the element of surprise they had having come into this season on the back of a nightmare 2024-25.

They finished bottom of the URC for the first time and Tiatia won just once – at Newcastle in the Challenge Cup – after taking the reins from Dai Flanagan.

Dragons have changed perceptions this season by becoming a tougher nut to crack; they pushed champions Leinster all the way in Newport when controversially denied a late chance to level and lost in the closing stages at Munster and Ospreys.

In Montpellier they stood up to the hosts' driving line-out – which is the best in the competition and did for Connacht in the quarter-finals – and their resilience was summed up by the turnovers of Thomas Young and Rio Dyer chasing a lost cause to save a try.

Tiatia demanded that his team learnt to stay in the fight and they have done that more regularly.

Rivals know that Dragons are no longer a soft touch and will not take them lightly, which means they must up their game again.

But while defence has improved, they still have the second worst record in the URC for points and tries conceded.

Loss of a superstar

Image caption,

Aaron Wainwright made his Wales debut in 2018

Dragons want to build but they are losing a talisman with Aaron Wainwright having just two more games for the club before moving to Leicester.

The number eight will leave a big hole and Tiatia is keen to stress that they will not replace him like-for-like.

Terrell Peita, who made his Blues debut in their Super Rugby win at Moana Pasifika last weekend, has been signed.

"He will bring something different and is not Aaron Wainwright," said Tiatia, who worked with Peita in New Zealand and described him as a "scrapper" who will "whack guys".

Dragons have also confirmed the signing Tongan wing Anzelo Tuitavuki from Colomiers and have lined up an overseas scrum-half.

After enjoying more recruitment hits than misses last summer, the hope is that the handful of new arrivals will help push the squad forward.

Dragons' history means they have been a tough sell but another season of progress would help them be more aggressive when targeting signings of established quality for 2027.

Homegrown talent increasing depth

Dragons' matchday squad in Montpellier featured 13 players who came through their academy.

Lock Ben Carter, blind-side flanker Ryan Woodman, hooker Brodie Coghlan and currently injured scrum-half Che Hope have made big improvements this season.

"All the players will be better for the experience of Montpellier and what has gone on over the last 12 months," said Rees.

"You review and help them grow individually, while ultimately you have to back those players up with a little bit of quality that comes in.

"Yes, they are losing Wainwright but they have also recruited and there will be a couple more coming in.

"You slowly build that strength in depth, and that is how a team and individuals grow."

The hope will be that full-back Huw Anderson, who was lively off the bench in the semi-final, back-row forwards Harry Beddall and Evan Minto and loose-head Jordan Morris can follow the lead of those who have flourished this year.

Dragons have used 49 players this season but the Challenge Cup group stage hammering at Benetton, when the Italians scored 11 tries in a 74-21 victory, exposed their lack of depth in certain areas.

Cardiff were able to rotate while combining a URC play-off challenge with qualifying for the European knockout stages.

Dragons, who enjoyed a budget increase after signing a new Professional Rugby Agreement last year, are not quite there yet as they play catch-up with Welsh rivals after seasons of being underfunded.

Moving up a rung in the URC

Image caption,

Angus O'Brien returned to Dragons from Scarlets in 2022

Defence coach Dale MacLeod – arguably an appointment even more influential than the summer signings of 2025 – made a bold prediction after arriving at Dragons.

In pre-season he insisted the target was the top eight of the URC, but Cardiff are Wales' only play-off contenders after Ospreys' admirable challenge amid off-field uncertainty fell short.

Dragons go into Saturday's home finale against Edinburgh looking to stay above Scarlets in the battle to avoid being Wales' lowest-ranked side.

Victory would also give them a shot at overhauling the Scots and Benetton.

Dragons have been much better in the URC but there is undeniably room for improvement, plus there is the pressing need to end the decade of derby misery against Cardiff.

Covid denied the club the chance to build on an encouraging season under Dean Ryan in 2019-20 but, with long-suffering supporters daring to dream, kicking on is essential in 2026.