THE Dragons suffered a thumping 52-25 defeat to Ulster in Belfast last night. Here are five things from the Guinness PRO14 clash at Kingspan Stadium.

1: Easy selection

The Dragons management have very few selection calls to make for the Southern Kings game next Saturday.

There are 11 shoo-ins, 13 if Tyler Morgan and Ollie Griffiths, who was forced off in the closing stages in Belfast, are fit.

Hallam Amos, Ashton Hewitt, Jack Dixon, Gavin Henson, Sarel Pretorius, Brok Harris, Elliot Dee, Leon Brown, Cory Hill, Harri Keddie and James Benjamin are all certs for the XV.

That leave a position in the back three, with Carl Meyer favourite, and either Matthew Screech or Rynard Landman in the second row.

It would have taken an absolute stormer to have changed Bernard Jackman’s selection for Rodney Parade and nobody produced one.

There were a few okay displays – notably from some of the younger brigade – but the only jostling in the depth chart from those who were third in line potentially moving to second.

The Dragons XV is becoming clear.

2: Defensive woes

The Dragons defence was excellent against Connacht, limiting a notoriously tricky province to a solitary driving lineout try.

The danger of flinging a load of fringe players in en bloc is that they will be disjoined in defence, and so it proved in Belfast.

But it was the ease with which Ulster scored that was alarming and some players just weren’t getting it early in the game. They were passive and on their heels rather than the balls of their feet.

The first try was horrid; an overlap should have been blown by a pass behind Charles Piutau yet Ulster still regathered the ball and cruised over.

Number two was even worse against a leaden-footed defence, Peter Nelson cruising through a gaping hole between Robson Blake and Lloyd Fairbrother. It wasn’t even clever exploitation of confusion between guard and bodyguard, it was just running straight.

The other first half tries were down to a well-executed (if poorly defended) lineout drive and then Ulster muscle but the start of the second half was disheartening with a shocker by debutant Thretton Palamo and then powder-puff defence.

Missed one-on-one tackles stick out in the professional game and the Dragons first team need to pick up where they left off so impressively against Connacht, defending with hunger, desire and desperation.

Defence coach Hendre Marnitz will be desperate to impress against his compatriots.

3: Learning curve

The Dragons fielded Max Williams (full debut at 19), Owain Leonard (full debut at 19), George Gasson (debut at 20), Will Talbot-Davies (second PRO14 appearance at 20), Joe Davies (PRO14 debut at 21), Lennon Greggains (debut from the bench at 18).

It was a painful experience but they should take note from the corresponding fixture three years ago when a young talent made his regional bow, a man who led the charge with typical gusto in Belfast.

Ollie Griffiths is a prospect of genuine Test quality and has come on leaps and bounds since playing as a replacement in the 23-6 loss at Ravenhill in 2014.

He may still only be 22 but the flanker, as well as Hallam Amos for the backs, is an example to all of the talented youngsters on the region’s books.

4: Paint it Blacker

It could have been seen as a thankless task coming on with half an hour left at 45-13 but Dane Blacker grasped the most unexpected of chances with one try and a glorious assist.

Firstly it should be noted that the Dragons are only dealing in a short-term gain; Cardiff Blues rate the 19-year-old highly and in time he will be a hit in the capital.

Yet, for now the Rodney Parade region can prosper from the presence of the former Coleg y Cymoedd student with Blacker, a player who thrives in broken play, being a perfect accompaniment for Sarel Pretorius.

Even if Charlie Davies and Tavis Knoyle were fit, the experienced South African has all the tools to establish himself as prime nine under Bernard Jackman’s high-tempo style.

Blacker would ensure there is no let-off for the defence, rapidly getting to the breakdown and whipping it away without fuss or sniping if there is a gap.

5: Cheap bonuses

The introduction of bonus points has been a huge hit in domestic rugby yet the rules in the Guinness PRO14 (and Aviva Premiership, see Wasps 50 Sale 35) are open to exploitation.

The Dragons were pushing for a consolation courtesy of a fourth try at the death in Belfast despite being comprehensively outplayed.

Ulster had their own five-point haul in the bag just past the quarter (they were never going to lose from there) and had absolutely no incentive, other than avoiding the ire of their defence coach, to prevent the visitors from crossing four times.

Such games don’t happen regularly, thank god, but the French system seems much better.

In the Top 14 teams must score at least three tries more than their opponent, ensuring there are no cheap extras.

The Dragons were pressing for a bonus point at the death and it could be argued that their best way to increase their tally on the road would be to make certain games loose.

In Cork against Munster at the end of 2015 they left with a four-try bonus from a 50-27 defeat. They’d take similar results against Munster and Leinster in November.