Dragons v Ulster: Teams
Tonderai Chavhanga will make his debut for the Dragons against Ulster at Rodney Parade on Friday.
Last Updated: 29/09/11 2:33pm
The Newport-Gwent Dragons have included two uncapped players in their squad for Friday's RaboDirect PRO12 encounter against Ulster at Rodney Parade.
Former Springbok wing Tonderai Chavhanga is included in the starting XV, while tighthead prop Kieron Jenkins is named on the bench. Pontypool back Geraint O'Driscoll, who made his debut against Connacht last week, is also named as one of the replacements.
"It's been great to finally have Tondi in our ranks," Dragons head coach Darren Edwards told the team's official website.
"It's been a long process to get him here but the buzz he has created in the team is really encouraging. Not only does he have a speed that is well-documented but he has a great understanding of the game which will stand him in good stead.
"He is also very hard-working and has fitted into the team really well. Our dressing room cohesion is a vital part of rugby at the Dragons and Chavhanga will certainly add to that."
Rookie chance
Injury woes in the pack have forced Edwards to rope in rookie Jenkins.
"The injury problems in the front row, particularly at tighthead have given us a chance to bring in a couple of Premiership players this week to train with the region, and boost their own experience," he said.
"As a region we want to concentrate on developing Welsh players both through our age-grade set-up but also through the Premiership."
Meanwhile, Ulster head coach Brian McLaughlin has made five changes, including a positional switch, to his team.
Ulster, who have made an impressive start to the season with three wins in their four matches, will be without Jared Payne (dead leg) and Ian Humphreys (shoulder).
Adam D'Arcy takes over from Payne at full-back while Paddy Jackson slots in at fly-half in place of the absent Humphreys. Darren Cave is still unavailable for selection due to a hamstring injury.
Kyriacou out
Up front Andi Kyriacou, who has been a constant feature in the starting XV this season, is replaced by Nigel Brady at hooker. Willie Faloon is handed the number seven jersey which means Chris Henry moves to the back of scrum with Robbie Diack dropping to the bench.
Joining Diack on the bench is academy prop Kyle McCall who is in line to make his first-team debut.
Dragons: 15 Martyn Thomas, 14 Tonderai Chavhanga, 13 Tom Riley, 12 Ashley Smith, 11 Mike Poole, 10 Jason Tovey, 9 Wayne Evans, 8 Andrew Coombs, 7 Gavin Thomas, 6 Lewis Evans, 5 Rob Sidoli, 4 Adam Jones, 3 Nathan Buck, 2 Tom Willis (capt), 1 Nathan Williams
Replacements: 16 Rhys Buckley, 17 Phil Price, 18 Kieron Jenkins, 19 Darren Waters, 20 Jevon Groves, 21 Joe Bedford, 22 Geraint O'Driscoll, 23 Matthew Jones
Ulster: 15 Adam D'Arcy, 14 Craig Gilroy, 13 Nevin Spence, 12 Luke Marshall, 11 Ian Whitten, 10 Paddy Jackson, 9 Paul Marshall, 8 Chris Henry (capt), 7 Willie Faloon, 6 Pedrie Wannenburg, 5 Dan Tuohy, 4 Lewis Stevenson, 3 Jerry Cronin, 2 Nigel Brady, 1 Declan Fitzpatrick
Replacements: 16 Andi Kyriacou, 17 Kyle McCall, 18 Adam Macklin, 19 Tim Barker, 20 Robbie Diack, 21 Ian Porter, 22 James McKinney, 23 Conor Gaston
