Cardiff flanker Josh Turnbull hailed his team’s character after they came from behind to defeat the Dragons in a bonus-point success on Monday.
The win at Rodney Parade saw the lead change hands on more than one occasion as Cardiff were in front thanks to Tomos Williams (2) and Josh Adams’ tries.
However, the Dragons moved ahead late on before replacement Corey Domachowski crossed for Cardiff in the final play to seal a maximum haul on Boxing Day.
United Rugby Championship win
The 29-24 result was one to savour for Turnbull, who revealed after the URC match that they didn’t panic, which is a testament of where the squad is currently at.
“We always knew that if we stuck with what we were doing and with what we knew we could do, then we would come away with points and we did that,” he told Cardiff’s official website. “Every time we executed what we set out to do and came away with something.
“It was really pleasing that we stuck in there right until the end. It was a full 80 minutes from all the boys, the whole bench made an impact and it was just a matter of us doing the right things, in the right areas of the field to come away with the W.
“It’s always difficult but as a group of players, we have shown we can dig deep this year, what it means to play for the badge and there’s a real group of boys who want to prove that we an come away with something especially when we’re under the pump as we were.”
The URC win puts Cardiff in fifth position and they crucially also have a 10-point buffer in the Welsh Shield, with Turnbull pleased with his side’s performances.
“We’re all in a good spot, we have boys stepping up and putting their voices across,” he said, with their next game coming against Ospreys at home on Sunday.
Ospreys next up on home soil
“We have good game drivers in Tomos Williams, Jarrod, Rhys Priestland, Lloyd Williams, who understand the game really well, keep putting us in the right areas and ultimately as forwards it’s down to us to deliver the ball for them to play.”
He added on their recent form: “It probably started from the last derby against the Scarlets, we had a good win and we’ve carried the momentum from there. We’ve only lost once since then and we’re in a rich vein of form but we have to keep working hard and challenging ourselves to get better each week.
“The Ospreys have had a couple of good wins of late. But for us it’s about building on what we’ve done against the Dragons, that’s what we do every week. Every time we get a W, it’s what can we do better? How can we do it better and then implementing it in the following week.
“We always enjoy a full Arms Park so if you haven’t got a ticket get a ticket. Come and enjoy it. New Year’s Day. We’re all looking forward to another big derby against the Ospreys.”