Dragons secure rare Ospreys scalp

After a good performance from both regions in the first round both were looking to carry on their good form. The Ospreys went into the second round clash with a convincing win over the Blues behind them while the Dragons had pushed the Scarlets all the way to lose out by two points.
 
In the sixth minute the scoring was opened by Amberley Ruck. Continuity from the Dragons going through a number of phases led to the ball being pushed through the hands and the full back crossed in the right hand corner.
 
The match ebbed and flowed until half-time with some great rugby from both sides. The game was levelled up just before the break with Ospreys captain Adi Taviner crossing the whitewash. 
 
The Ospreys started the second half with a bang, Ffion Bowen going around the outside and bursting through the tackle to score under the posts. Kerin Lake added the extras to put the Ospreys 12-5 ahead.
 
A few minutes later the scores were level again with the Dragons centre Rebecca de Fillipo smashing through tackles to cross the line. De Fillipo had been a force all afternoon, terrorising the Ospreys defence, with two particularly bone crunching tackles. Elinor Snowsill added the extras.
 
With the game going into the final 10 minutes all square at 12-12, the dead lock was broken with a bit of individual brilliance from Ruck, who took a quick line-out to herself, before feeding the ball to replacement Ceri Bailey, who then fed the ball to winger Charlie Murray who crossed in the corner.
 
Ruck couldn’t convert which left the Dragons leading 17-12 with nine minutes to go. Possession went back and fore in this period with the Dragons holding on for a tight victory.
 
Dragons captain Cerys Hale was elated with the hard earned victory.
 
“Credit to the Ospreys, it was a great advert for regional rugby. It’s been a long time coming, we haven’t beaten the Ospreys for over five years, so to come away with the victory today with a performance to match is just what we needed.”