Centre Tom Griffiths is looking to banish his injury frustration by firing Dragons to the top of Pool 1 in the European Challenge Cup.
Griffiths will start at inside centre today (Friday) as Dragons look to make it two from two in Europe against Enisei-STM in Krasnodar, Russia (kick-off 3pm UK time).
The 24-year-old started the opening pool stage win over Castres Olympique at Rodney Parade as he put a spell on the sidelines with an ankle injury behind him.
And following his summer switch from Saracens, the Gloucester-born back is now eager to make up for lost time and show his worth to boss Dean Ryan.
“It has been a long time since I last played, probably five or six months, so it was good to get back out there,” he said. “I was back ahead of schedule so it was a lot of fun.
“There are work-ons, but against a good outfit like Castres, with huge budgets and big boys, we started really well and managed to build up a lead.
“Second half we shut up shop, despite their best efforts. I was really pleased with how we started the Challenge Cup so hopefully we can build on that.
“There have been a lot of frustrations for me,” he added. “I have missed a lot of time and rugby over the last few years, so it wasn’t an ideal start having surgery after two or three weeks here.
“To finally get back out there was great. I was obviously a bit rusty, but it was a great start and to begin with a win was good.”
Russian side Enisei-STM are the next opponents at the Kuban Stadium and Griffiths insists Dragons will be taking nothing for granted.
“We take every game seriously - no matter what the opposition,” he said.
“They are a good team and we know what they are going to bring, they are going to be physical and look to disrupt our game a lot.
“It’s a good challenge that we are all looking forward to. We’re all looking forward to flying into Friday.”
It has been a long time since I last played, probably five or six months, so it was good to get back out there...
