The Dragons were able to reveal this week that the giant lock will be joining them next season from the English Premiership title contenders, for who he makes a 99th appearance against Harlequins on Sunday.
Jonah Holmes, Nick Tompkins and Jamie Roberts have added international expertise to the Dragons back line this season, but Ryan believes the arrival of the 6’ 7” tall, 123kg lock could be transformational for his pack.
With Welsh internationals Elliot Dee and Leon Brown in the front row, and Aaron Wainwright, Ollie Griffiths and Ross Moriarty in the back row, Rowlands will be sandwiched between some established talent.
“In the English Premiership final last season against Exeter, with Wasps low on quality because of COVID and playing in poor conditions, you could really see Will’s contribution to the front five. I thought that typified the type of player both the Dragons and Wales would want to be playing back here in Wales,” said Ryan.
“Will is a 6’ 7” international quality lock with an incredible work rate. That doesn’t come along very often and I still think he has a huge amount of room to get better through his experiences at international level. There is a lot more to come from him and that’s what is most exciting.
“When we looked at the Welsh Exiles market, Will was someone we identified as someone to who we could offer a way back to compete in Wales. We’ve had successes around people like Jonah and Nick and we have been in conversations with Will for some time.
“His enthusiasm and desire to get involved here at the Dragons is something we are really excited about. We definitely need more players around the 28-29 year age bracket like Will.
“He is a proven quantity in the English Premiership and is now finding his feet in the international arena.”
The Dragons have made real progress in difficult circumstances under Ryan’s expert guidance and he believes the way in which he has been framing the offering from his region to potential recruits has been key in clinching some impressive deals.
“We’ve always been quite clear that our challenge is different to the other regions. We are at a different point,” said Ryan.
“But framed in the right way, it can be equally as exciting. When people are quite clear on what that is, they understand what they are being asked to contribute.
“I’ve never really dressed it up to be something else and I think that transparency has helped us in the recruitment market.”
