Dragons v Cardiff - teams and prediction

ROUND EIGHT PREVIEW: The Dragons and Cardiff have named their teams for the United Rugby Championship Boxing Day derby.

Angus O’Brien will hit a century of appearances for Dragons when the Men of Gwent face Cardiff at Rodney Parade on Thursday.

O’Brien hits the milestone as Dragons make five changes from the side that defeated Newcastle Falcons in Europe last time.

Wales wing Rio Dyer and Jared Rosser return on the wings while scrumhalf Rhodri Williams joins forces with centurion O’Brien (No.10) at halfback.

Lock Joe Davies is recalled, partnering Ryan Woodman in the second row, while Taine Basham is back at openside flank.

Dan Lydiate shifts across to the blindside.

Wales international Elliot Dee could make his first appearance of the season from the bench while Aki Seiuli, Will Reed and Shane Lewis-Hughes – less than three weeks after a finger amputation – are also named as replacements.

“Cardiff is a good team,” Dragons coach Filo Tiatia said.

“They will aspire to come out with a win as well. It’s not different to ours.

“Everyone is looking forward to the game. We’ve watched Cardiff closely and we’re neighbours they would have done the same.

“It’s going to be a sell-out, or close to it, and the traditions of the Boxing Day game are special. It’s a great opportunity for the players selected.”

Meanwhile, the club can also confirm that backs coach Matt O’Brien will lead the coaching team on Boxing Day, with interim head coach Filo Tiatia having returned home for family reasons.

In a pre-arranged departure, Tiatia led all match preparations as normal before returning to New Zealand to be with his father for his 80th birthday.

Cardiff made four changes for their Boxing Day derby against Dragons.

The Blue and Blacks triumphed over their East Wales rivals in the last round of the United Rugby Championship and finished the first block of European action with a bonus-point triumph over Cheetahs.

They have stuck with the majority of the side that claimed a bonus-point European victory over Cheetahs for the trip the Rodney Parade.

Three of the changes come in the pack, with Daf Hughes starting in the place of club captain Liam Belcher, and Kieron Assiratti also returning to the starting line-up with Corey Domachowski making up the front row.

The second row remains unchanged, while Alex Mann comes into the starting line-up in the number seven jersey alongside James Botham and Taulupe Faletau.

There is just one change in the backline, with Gabriel Hamer-Webb joining Josh Adams and Cam Winnett in the back-three. Tom Bowen drops to the bench following an impressive try-scoring senior debut against the Cheetahs.

“It’s always an exciting time of year and there is a good buzz among the players as we approach back-to-back Welsh derbies,” Cardiff head coach Matt Sherratt said.

“I always enjoy going to Rodney Parade. It feels like a proper old school derby, packed to the rafters, especially after the warm up when you walk off.

“You get a pretty hostile reception, but that’s what it’s all about. I’m really looking forward to it and the players are as well.

“We only played the Dragons two games ago, so we don’t expect much to change tactically in that time.

“But we just have to focus on ourselves, getting our own game right and making sure we put as much of it on the field, for as long as possible.”

Prediction

@rugby365com: Cardiff by five points

Teams

Dragons: 15 Huw Anderson, 14 Rio Dyer, 13 Joe Westwood, 12 Aneurin Owen, 11 Jared Rosser, 10 Angus O’Brien (captain), 9 Rhodri Williams, 8 Aaron Wainwright, 7 Taine Basham, 6 Dan Lydiate, 5 Ryan Woodman, 4 Joe Davies, 3 Chris Coleman, 2 Brodie Coghlan, 1 Rodrigo Martinez.
Replacements: 16 Elliot Dee, 17 Aki Seiuli, 18 Paula Latu, 19 Nick Thomas, 20 Shane Lewis-Hughes, 21 Che Hope, 22 Will Reed, 23 Cai Evans.

Cardiff: 15 Cam Winnett, 14 Josh Adams, 13 Rey Lee-Lo, 12 Ben Thomas (captain), 11 Gabe Hamer-Webb, 10 Callum Sheedy, 9 Aled Davies, 8 Taulupe Faletau, 7 Alex Mann, 6 James Botham, 5 Teddy Williams, 4 Josh McNally, 3 Keiron Assiratti, 2 Dafydd Hughes, 1 Corey Domachowski.
Replacements: 16 Evan Lloyd, 17 Danny Southworth, 18 Rhys Litterick, 19 Seb Davies, 20 Alun Lawrence, 21 Ellis Bevan, 22 Rory Jennings, 23 Tom Bowen.

Date: Thursday, December 26
Venue: Rodney Parade, Newport
Kick-off: 17.15 (17.15 GMT)
Referee: Adam Jones (Wales)
Assistant referees: Ben Breakspear (Wales), Ben Whitehouse (Wales)
TMO: Keith David (Wales)