The Rodney Parade region have suffered an injury crisis at the start of this season with all five senior centres sidelined by injuries after just three rounds of matches. Lee Byrne and Jason Tovey also missed the 33-13 defeat to last season’s Guinness PRO12 runners-up Glasgow on Saturday, but are set to boost the region by returning for their home clash against Treviso this weekend.
Ben John has been brought in on-loan from the Ospreys and Ashley Smith is set for his first action for six months against the Italians, and Jones is hopeful they can lead the region to their first victory this season.
He said: “We know where we are at the moment – our average age behind the scrum was 22-and-a-half. We realise we need to get our experienced players back on the field. If we do that it will give us confidence.We are hoping there will be a couple of fellas coming back next week against Trevisio in Lee, Jason and Ashley. We need those guys back on the field.
“There was lots of good things out there but we didn’t back it up. We have got holes in our defence and in our attack. We can’t do anything about it other than rolling up our sleeves.”
Angus O’Brien was thrown into the fold after Tovey limped off injured in the regional clash with the Ospreys in round two. And despite going down in all three opening fixtures, Jones has been impressed with how his young-guns have performed at the top-level.
He said: “I was delighted with the attitude our players took in to the match with Glasgow. They gave 100%. We have got the right people, the right personalities but we don’t have the balance at the moment. But there’s lots more to come from us. We knew the start of this season was going to be tough, with the inexperience we have got and knitting a side together.”
