A Boxing Day derby victory was the perfect way to bring 2019 to a close, says head coach John Mulvihill.
It was a typically tight affair in the Welsh capital, with Shane Lewis-Hughes crossing for the hosts’ only try of the game.
Mulvihill insists there is still work to do ahead of the clash against Scarlets at the Arms Park on January 3, but was delighted to see an improvement in his side’s discipline.
“Those derbies are always going to be tough against a Dragons side who had a good win last week,” said the Australian.
“You’ll take the points, but when we look back at it we probably won’t be happy with certain parts of our game and we’ll need to improve before our next game against Scarlets.
“We got lulled into playing a little bit too much rugby around halfway in those conditions, and that’s how Scarlets lost the game last week.
“We played into their hands in the last 20 minutes, but when we were in control and stuck to the gameplan we looked really good. When we stuck on to the ball for too long in the wrong areas is when we got ourselves into trouble.
“One of the biggest things was our discipline. Last week, we gave away 14 penalties, but this week we gave away six by half time and didn’t give one away in the second half until the 81st minute.
“The boys deserve credit for that. We worked on the breakdown and they came at us hard in that area and we were a lot better.
“We’ve won four in a row in the PRO14, which is a great way to end the year. Our pool is really tough, and all the teams are doing really but we’re not far from second place.
“All we can do is control the way we prepare and play, and hopefully we’ll continue to climb the ladder.
“There’s a lot to play for, with a lot of front liners to come back so the three week break in January will come at a good time for us.
“We need to get over the hangover of losing the first few games, which we’ve done over the last two years. We need to be consistent in everything we do, both on and off the field.”
While Mulvihill was delighted with the team effort in the victory, he also praised the performances of Ben Thomas and Josh Adams.
Mulvihill added: “I thought Ben Thomas had one of his better games for us. Even though he wasn’t as sharp as he was against Pau a few weeks back, his defence was really good and that’s something he needs to continually work on.
“He brought a physicality to the game and he’s got some good players around him so he’ll go from strength to strength.
“Every time Josh Adams touched the ball the crowd were on their feet because it looked like something would happen.
“He was powerful tonight, and we’re really glad he’s at the club.”