Edinburgh edge tight league encounter

Aaron Wainwright’s final game at Rodney Parade ended in defeat as Edinburgh edged a tense BKT United Rugby Championship encounter.

On a night of high emotion as fan favourite Wainwright said his goodbyes to the home faithful on his 100th URC appearance, an engrossing league fixture ebbed and flowed as both teams wrestled for control.

Prop Dillon Lewis grabbed a first half try as the Men of Gwent trailed at the break.

Harri Keddie scored after the interval to spark hopes of another home triumph.

But on an evening when three homes scores were chalked off by the TMO, a brace Duhan van der Merwe ultimately saw the Scottish side sweep to victory.

Head Coach Filo Tiatia made six changes to the side that were defeated in the European semi-finals at Montpellier as Keddie, Seb Davies, Lewis and Brodie Coghlan returned as in the forwards.

Scrum half Rhodri Wiliams was also back to partner Tinus de Beer while the final change is a recall for Jared Rosser on the wing.

Dragons unloaded some big hits in the opening 60 seconds, but prop Martinez was an early injury concern and quickly replaced by the returning Rhodri Jones.

Edinburgh looked to play from deep but a misplaced passes put a scrambling Thompson under huge pressure and Thomas Young pounced at the breakdown to win a penalty. Up stepped O’Brien to put Dragons ahead.

A slick move off a scrum sent Williams down the short side and he fed Tinus de Beer who exchanged passes with Dyer as the home side looked to attack from deep.

Williams kept Edinburgh pinned back with a smart kick to the corner as he spotted space before Dyer had to be alert the other end of the field after Darcy Graham exploited gaps in behind.

Edinburgh won a scrum penalty and kicked to the corner and not the posts. The decision was vindicated as hooker Ewan Ashman crashed over for the lead.

Dragons were gradually having to do more defending in the opening quarter of the game, but they held firm under pressure and won back possession as they looked for territory and an attacking platform.

Handling mistakes were undermining the home attack as O’Brien cut inside and launched a foray from his own half but follow up runners failed to cling onto ball.

A scrum penalty on Edinburgh ball stirred the terrace volume up and O’Brien went to the corner and not the posts. It was proved inspired as the maul punched over from distance with Dillon Lewis scoring his first for the club.

Edinburgh looked to hit back as they kept the ball alive and eventually kicked down the left wing to win a lineout after a deflection.

Dragons thought they had a second try just before the break when Dyer streaked away from deep, but play was pulled back for a knock on by the home side in the build-up.

And Edinburgh had the final word of the first half as Tom Currie crashed over and Thompson slotted the kick for a 14-10 lead at the break.

Dragons exploded out the blocks at the start of the second half and scored a stunning second score as Dyer blitzed past his opposite number and fed Williams inside who sent Keddie over to a massive ovation.

Wainwright rumbled off the back of a scrum in trademark fashion, but back came the visitors as Duhan van der Merwe scored out wide to wrestle back the lead with half an hour to go.

The game was running from end to end as replacement Armstrong ghosted over but the try was chalked off by the TMO, but Dylan Richards was yellow carded for a cynical infringement.

Dragons piled on the pressure against 14 men but could not unlock the Scottish defence as they rallied and held out twice under the shadow of their own posts.

More TMO intervention with 15 minutes left saw Boan Venter yellow carded with an off-field review for a high shot on Owen.

Dragons again camped in the visiting 22 and they appealed for the score with the officials eventually ruling out a third home score of the night.

Woodman came on for his 50th appearance for the Men of Gwent as tension grew into the final ten minutes with the game on a knife edge.

But it was van der Merwe who wrapped up the game when he burst past men and handed off tacklers to dot down out wide.

Timeline:

08m O’Brien p 3-0

18m Ashman t Thompson c 3-7

28m Lewis t O’Brien c 10-7

39m Currie t Thompson c 10-14

45m Keddie t 15-14

49m Van der Merwe t 15-19

74m Van der Merwe t 15-24

Dragons RFC: Angus O’Brien (Anderson 75), Jared Rosser, Fine Inisi, Aneurin Owen (Ackerman 75), Rio Dyer, Tinus de Beer, Rhodri Williams (Armstrong 50); Rodrigo Martinez (Jones 2), Brodie Coghlan (Dee 50), Dillon Lewis (Coleman 50), Seb Davies (Screech 57), Ben Carter, Harrison Keddie (Woodman 72), Thomas Young, Aaron Wainwright

Replacements: Elliot Dee, Rhodri Jones, Chris Coleman, Matthew Screech, Ryan Woodman, Niall Armstrong, Harri Ackerman, Huw Anderson

Edinburgh Rugby: Harry Paterson, Darcy Graham, Mosese Tuipulotu, Findlay Thomson, Duhan van der Merwe, Ross Thompson, Hector Patterson; Pierre Schoeman, Ewan Ashman, Ollie Blyth-Lafferty, Callum Hunter-Hill, Grant Gilchrist, Glen Young, Freddy Douglas, Tom Currie

Replacements: Dylan Richardson, Boan Venter, Paul Hill, Marshall Sykes, Liam McConnell, Magnus Bradbury, Charlie Shiel, Piers O’Conor

Referee: Filippo Russo (FIR, 9th game)

Attendance: 7,079