Newport’s regional rugby team
Dragons set to face French giants
Oct 13 – The Dragons open their European campaign with a home tie against USA Perpignan on Friday (kick off 8pm). USA equals Union Sportive Arlequins, by the way. The French side have made an unconvincing start to the Top 14 winning all three of their home fixtures but failing to fire in their three away fixtures. They are ninth in the table, having finished thirteenth last season and surviving an end of season play off with Provence. Their summer signings included New Zealand winger Sevu Reece.
The four previous encounters between the two teams have brought only one win for the Newport based region by 23-13 in 2011.
Ospreys win the battle of the driving mauls!
Oct 9 – The Ospreys won the battle of the driving mauls by 38-28 over the Dragons at Rodney Parade this evening.
The Dragons started strongly and after a series of penalties conceded by the Ospreys they drove over from a maul on five minutes. Elliot Dee got the score, converted by de Beer . The Ospreys responded with a similar score on 17 minutes with Ross Moriarty crashing over. After a long period of stalemate the Ospreys broke out of defence with wing Giles getting a try converted by Edwards. On the stroke of half time the Dragons mauled over again, this time it was brought down by the Ospreys. The Dragons went in 14-12 with Moriarty yellow carded.
Carry on mauling carried on in the second half. Fourteen man Ospreys scored through Parry, converted by Edwards before the Dragons scored another driving maul try via Dee, converted by de Beer to make 21-19 on 50 minutes. Another driving maul on 53 minutes from the Ospreys put them back in the lead, Parry scored the try, Edwards kicked the conversion.
Finally some open play and fluency. Dynamic interplay from O’Brien and Hope led to a Tuitavuki try on 57 minutes, converted by de Beer to make it 28-26.
The Ospreys went ahead after a poor defensive kick from Williams led to a try for Morgan Morris on 71 minutes. Edwards missed the conversion. Morris made the game safe with another try on 79 minutes, converted by Edwards.
Thrilling victory for Dragons
Oct 3 – The lead changed hands several times in this exciting Welsh derby in front of a 7163 crowd before the Dragons rallied strongly to secure a good 38-26 victory over the Scarlets at Rodney Parade.
Macs Page gave the West Walians the lead after just three minutes with a try converted by Sam Costelow. The Dragons hit back Tongan wing Tuitavuki scoring in the left corner with a conversion by de Beer. They forced their way into the lead as Elliot Dee finished a powerful driving maul. The Scarlets retook the lead with Page scoring another, Costelow converting to lead 14-12 at the break.
Within a minute of the restart the Dragons were in front, after a break from Tuitavaki Rodrigo Martinez went over from close range, de Beer converted the goal. After 57 minutes the Scarlets regained the lead, following a drive with a Sam O’Connor try, converted by Costelow. The Dragons sustained attacks on the Scarlets line before Aneurin Owen fed Huw Anderson to score on the right. De Beer’s conversion attempt rebounded off the post.
The Dragons forwards were in the ascendancy and another driving line out saw Dee touch down, de Beer converted for a 31-21 lead. Not to be outdone the Scarlets scored within a minute. A quick line out saw Ioan Jones score but Costelow missed the conversion, 31-26 with eight minutes to play. The Dragons kept the ball in the tight and more drives and defensive penalties led to a last minute try for Rob Hunt, South African prop, converted by sub fly half Jac Lloyd to seal a thrilling victory.
Dragons fight back for draw in opener
Sep 26 – The Dragons opened their campaign with a fight back to draw at Benetton 19-19.
Their tries came from De Beer, Inisi and Dee. De Beer added 2 conversions. De Beer’s last minute effort came back off the post.
Dragons head coach Filo Tiatia said:” The mentality for the boys to say in the fight was good. We fought hard, we defended well and we took our chances. We have just got to be a little but more clinical.
Tiatia and Dragons in contract talks
Sep 21 – Media reports confirm talks are ongoing to extend the contract of Dragons head coach Filo Tiatia
His current deal expires at the end of the 2026-27 campaign and Dragons are keen to retain his services. They play Benneton away on Friday in their first URC fixture.
Huge friendly win for Dragons
Sep 12 – Even by friendly standards the Dragons recorded a huge win over the Scarlets at Church Bank in Llandovery yesterday evening. The Newport based region won by 80-14, scoring twelve tries and sixty one unanswered points in the second half.
Reflecting on where the squad are after two pre-season games backs coach Matt O’Brien stated: “We are happy with where we are currently. We’ve had two good results in the two games, and we will have an opposed session this week against one of the Premiership sides in England. That will be another good marker for us and a chance to go against somebody else.”
Dragons start with emphatic friendly win
Sep 5 – The Dragons opened their new season at Rodney Parade with an emphatic 81-12 friendly win over English second tier side Hartpury including tries for new signings Anzelo Tu’itavuki and Ereatara Enari.
New season preview
No one is predicting a major pick up in the Dragons fortunes during 2026-27 but they are expected to improve their ability to compete and, at least, win more of their home matches.
The biggest positive is continuity. This is the most settled Dragons squad from one season to the next in recent years, which should give Filo Tiatia a much better platform to develop his playing style and systems.
The positives
- Aneurin Owen is coming off another excellent season, winning the club’s Player of the Season award for the second year running. He is increasingly becoming an important leadership figure.
- The squad has added Ere Enari, Anzelo Tuitavuki and Terrell Peita, giving Tiatia some fresh options without requiring another major rebuild.
- There appears to be a clear emphasis on improving both attack and defence, rather than simply trying to patch individual weaknesses.
- The opening URC fixture is a significant test: Benetton away on 25 September.
The major concern
The loss of Aaron Wainwright is enormous. He leaves after 129 Dragons appearances. But he isn’t just a statistical loss — Dragons are losing experience, physicality and a genuine club leader. The departure of several other players means the younger squad members will need to take responsibility quickly.
Dragons new kit unveiled
August 25 – Newport’s regional rugby team is embracing the colours of the City as the new season approaches. The new-look Dragons RFC home and away kit for the 2026/27 season is officially unveiled – and you can purchase it in store and online
They will wear the latest evolution of the iconic home kit – designed by Official Kit Partners VX3 – for the first time when they face Hartpury in a pre-season fixture at Rodney Parade on Saturday, September 5.
Supporters can also buy the new home and away kit by visiting the VX3 store in Friars Walk, Newport. The store is open between 9.30am and 4.30pm.
Dragons season review
The 2025/26 season represented a step forward for Dragons RFC, even if it ultimately fell short of transforming the region into genuine URC contenders. After years of occupying the foot of the table and struggling for consistency, the Newport based region showed signs of resilience, particularly at Rodney Parade, where improved home performances gave supporters renewed optimism. A notable 28-5 victory over the Scarlets on New Year’s Day highlighted the progress being made under interim head coach Filo Tiatia and demonstrated a greater level of confidence than had been evident in previous campaigns.
The Dragons remained well short of the league’s leading sides and were still prone to heavy defeats against stronger opposition. Defensive frailties continued to be exposed against the competition’s elite teams, while a lack of squad depth made it difficult to sustain momentum across the season. Nevertheless, there were encouraging individual performances, with several younger players gaining valuable experience and a more competitive forward pack laying foundations for future improvement.
Their European Challenge Cup campaign provided further encouragement. The Dragons progressed from the pool stage and produced some memorable performances particularly their stunning victory over Stade Francais before eventually falling in the latter stages of the competition to eventual winners Montpelier offering supporters a rare taste of knockout rugby.
Overall, 2025/26 was not a breakthrough season, but it was a more credible and competitive one. For a club that has spent much of the professional era battling negative perceptions, signs of progress mattered. The challenge now is turning occasional promise into sustained success and proving that this season was the beginning of something more substantial rather than another false dawn.