Connacht fall to Dragons after one of their worst performances in years
Connacht will head into Christmas and two tough derby games on the back of one of their worst defeats in years after going down to a Dragons side that had gone 23 games in the URC without winning a match.
For a time, after conceding 48 points without reply, it seemed that they were heading for a record defeat in the competition but they rallied and three tries in the closing 15 minutes, when the game was done, salvaged a try bonus point.
Connacht, despite losing winger Shayne Bolton to a leg injury, made a bright start and hit the front after ten minutes when Sam Gilbert scored his first try in his fourth appearance for the side.
But Connacht didn’t build on that score and found themselves penned back at the other end, and Dragons deservedly got back on level terms after 17 minutes.
Connacht hit back and opted to go for the left corner with a penalty in front of the posts, but Ioane somehow kicked the ball dead while going for the left corner and from there to the break it was one disaster after another, and the Dragons punished them.
The Newport side hit the front after 25 minutes when a lineout ball was knocked down and bounced high before scrum-half Che Hope gathered and sprinted through to score from 25 metres with the conversion making it 14-7.
That fired the Dragons and with Rio Dyer causing havoc down the left, they extended their lead by cranking up the tempo and the other winger Jared Rosser scored in the right corner while playing another advantage. Angus O’Brien landed his third conversion from the right to make it 21-7 eight minutes from the break.
Bundee Aki was held up and turned over as Connacht attacked from a lineout and with the clock in the red they got a relieving penalty inside their own half.
While they won the lineout several phases they were turned over when Dave Heffernan’s pass was intercepted by Fine Inisi and while he was stopped short, Dragons went to the corner with a couple of penalties and were rewarded with a penalty try.
O’Brien extended the lead to 31-7 from 40 metres on the right after 43 minutes. He added another penalty three minutes later after Chay Mullins was penalised.
It got worse for Connacht when Dyer went around another replacement Ben Murphy to score their fifth try but there was a brief reprieve for the visitors when Thomas Young’s try was scratched for a forward pass.
Connacht salvaged some pride when captain Cian Prendergast finished off two tries to cut the gap to 48-21 and bring them within a try of a bonus point with seven minutes remaining and a late surge yielded a bonus point when Sean Jansen got over in the 82nd minute.
