BERNARD Jackman reckons there were a dozen players not involved in the Dragons’ first pre-season fixture who would make his matchday 23 for the Guinness PRO14 opener against Benetton.

Head coach Jackman gave game time to 27 squad members at Ealing Trailfinders last Saturday as the Welsh region ran out 31-17 winners in west London.

A whole host of familiar names didn’t play a part in the match, with some set to feature in Friday’s Rodney Parade clash with Northampton and others entering the fray away to Gloucester next Thursday.

Backs who didn’t travel to the capital included Hallam Amos, Ashton Hewitt, Zane Kirchner, Dafydd Howells, Tavis Knoyle, Tyler Morgan and Arwel Robson.

While Aaron Jarvis, Elliot Dee, Leon Brown, Cory Hill, Aaron Wainwright, Ollie Griffiths, Harri Keddie, and Ross Moriarty were forwards who sat out the friendly.

Jackman is excited by the strength in depth he now has, and given the Dragons’ record with injuries, particularly last term, he is well aware of its importance to his squad.

“Last year, everyone tried their best but we probably didn’t have the experience or level of ability needed to compete at the level we’re competing at,” he said.

“The PRO14 has got more internationals than any other league, it has got some great teams in it, and you need to have a certain amount of talent.

“We’ve brought more talent in, we’ve developed our own young talent with people like Leon Brown, Elliot Dee and Aaron Wainwright, going from Dragons to be internationals.

“But we’ve also brought in some like Rhodri Williams, Josh Lewis, Richard Hibbard, Brandon Nansen and Huw Taylor etc.

“They’ve given us more quality but it also means we can train better.

“Our first-choice XV can train against a team who are a good level, which we didn’t have last year.

“We had a lot of injuries and our training levels were false because we didn’t have enough depth, but we’ve fixed that and that’s very pleasing.

“Over the next six or seven weeks is when you’re going to start getting a lot of injuries because people are getting into contact again, so every week we get through without any big injuries is a big bonus.

“I’d imagine the team, by Christmas, will be in a really good place, but we obviously have to start well and that’s the pressure at the moment.”

When asked if he knew his starting XV for Benetton on September 1, he added: “I looked at it during the week and I think there’s 12 players that would be very much at the forefront for being starters or in our matchday 23 that weren’t here (in Ealing), and that’s a big change for the Dragons.

“We want to get them back and the players who played today playing at their maximum potential and then see where we go.

“We’ve got a reasonable idea but I think the next two weeks will tell a lot in terms of who starts against Treviso.”