Dragons seek recovery in Cape Town before facing Bulls at altitude

The Dragons will enjoy a bit of the Cape Town Autumn sun to aid their recovery before venturing north to Pretoria to take on altitude and the Bulls at Loftus Versfeld.

After being routed by the Stormers on Saturday evening in the DHL Stadium, losing 48-12, the Welsh team decided to explore the Mother City for a bit longer ahead of their final United Rugby Championship (URC) clash of the season.

At the bottom of the official log, the Dragons conceded seven tries but showed glimpses of their fighting spirit when they kept the Stormers honest for about 30 minutes of their duel.

It was a matter of time, though, before the home side would open the floodgates, and in the second half, the visitors had no answer on the defence as their hosts started running rampant with the ball in hand.

Despite the heavy defeat, head coach Filo Tiatia was upbeat about the fight they showed in the first half. At the same time, he said they are all aware that things will only get tougher in Pretoria.

“We know what the aspirations of the Bulls are, and where they are on the ladder and where we are,” he said ahead of facing the Loftus side.

“The first part of the challenge will be the altitude. They have a very good power game with athletes on the edges. So, we are under no illusion of what the challenge will be. We will roll our sleeves up and recover well.

“The players will have a couple of days to have a look at Cape Town and learn about your country as a lot of them haven’t been here before. It’s a great opportunity to meet different people and cultures. It’s a great opportunity for the younger players.

When it comes closer to the time, we will look at the Bulls and zone in on the areas we need to be aware of.”