Dean Ryan admits he is eager to see his new troops in action after a long pre-season – insisting his Dragons are ‘ready to play’.
With the Rugby World Cup kicking off later this month, preparations for the new Guinness PRO14 and European season have taken place over a number of months this summer.
Ryan has been pleased with the squad at Rodney Parade and praised the attitude and desire to get better and develop.
However, after hours on the training paddock, he concedes the time has now come for rugby to take centre stage.
“We are ready to play. It’s been a long pre-season and the team has trained really well,” he said. “We needed everyone to understand what our priorities are, and I think they have done that really well.
“The Dragons XV have done really well in the Celtic Cup so it’s not just about the senior side, it is the whole of us playing now.
“In World Cup year things will be different and I just want to see people play now. I have ideas over who has trained well, but I want to see people out there in action.
“Five or six young lads in our Celtic Cup games have been outstanding and we’ve got to get the right environment and support them in the right way too. When they are in they are ready.”
Ryan admits he took a listening brief in his first few months at Dragons as he looked to fully understand the region’s set-up and the challenges going forward.
And he has been delighted by the response from his new-look senior squad.
“I’ve tried to support people and it is not just about what I have got to say. It’s also about what they have got to say and there is a huge amount of expertise here,” he said.
“It can’t just be about one person and maybe it has been more collaborative than they have been used to.
“Having people like Sam (Davies) around the squad gives us new stimulus and the last thing I want to do is make it about just what I want. It involves more than just me.
“Pre-conceptions can be inaccurate. In any place that has been struggling to find the answer you might think there are people that aren’t pulling in the right way.
“But this group has been fantastic and I couldn’t speak highly enough of them. If I had moved quicker I might not have found that out.
“There is a willingness to get better,” he added. “Sometimes there can be a perception about what is wrong, but here people want to get better, they are committed to that and are working hard.
“I appreciate the welcome I have had. Sometimes you have to manage expectations in terms of the pace of change, but I can’t speak highly enough of the group.”
In World Cup year things will be different and I just want to see people play now...
