Head Coach Filo Tiatia insisted his side are "much better than what we showed" after a disappointing derby performance saw Dragons RFC slip to a 31-14 defeat at the hands of Ospreys at a blustery St Helen’s.
The Men of Gwent played into the wind in the first half and despite opportunities were 19-7 down at the interval, before a mixture of ill-discipline and missed chances saw Dragons unable to capitalise on the strong breeze in the second 40.
Dragons’ two tries came in either half, for wings Rio Dyer and Anzelo Tuitavuki, but ultimately Tiatia acknowledged that Ospreys were the better side on a big night for the Swansea-based side as they opened their revamped home.
“We’re so much better than what we showed tonight,” said Tiatia. “We were clearly second best in most of the things.
“We had a lot of 22 entries, but didn’t capitalise on the opportunities we had and the possession we had, particularly first half.
“Ospreys were about three steps ahead of us and I thought their collision detail was good.
“We struggled to get momentum, particularly second half when we did have the wind."
In the midst of Storm Boelo, the weather had a significant impact on proceedings and Tiatia feels his side must “learn quickly” from the lessons of a second league defeat of the season.
“It was another learning for the group,” said Tiatia. “I don’t think we’ve played in conditions like this for a long while.
“Ospreys deservedly won the game, up front they dominated.
“Set-piece, their mauling was outstanding, so there are parts of the game that we need to do better - and we know we can do better.
“We’re going to have a look at the footage and how to we improve for Zebre next week.
“We need to learn quicker and learn quicker in moments and how we adjust."
We’re so much better than what we showed tonight. We were clearly second best in most of the things...
