IF there is one player who provides proof of the vast improvement Newport Gwent Dragons have made this season with their results and the style of their rugby it is scrum half Wayne Evans.

He is a player transformed with his energy, running and tactical appreciation. And he puts it down to the arrival of two new faces at Rodney Parade – one a player and the other a coach.

Evans would probably be the first to admit he had an indifferent season last year when, though playing pretty regularly, he failed to completely convince.

But now he is galvanised, and that is partly due to the presence of an ex-All Black in the ranks in the shape of Danny Lee and partly due to the encouragement he has received from new backs coach Darren Edwards.

Lee was, in fact, brought in to be the number one scrum half especially with his pedigree, but it says much for the form Evans has shown that Lee, though handicapped by a hamstring injury at the outset, hasn’t even been able to get into the side.

Evans admits the signing of Lee served to spur him on.

“All summer he was known as the number one, but it was up to me to get ahead of him and then stay ahead. Luckily I’m managing to do it,” he said.

“Darren wants me to deliver the ball and run when there’s a chance as well as just play my own game. He has given me a free role, I enjoy running and putting people in.

“During training sessions Darren makes the players enjoy what they are doing and they’ve got a smile on their faces.

“It’s a really enjoyable team to play in at the moment, everyone wants to play and we’re getting the okay from the coaches to try to play exciting rugby and everyone is running really good lines.

“We are more organised than we have ever been, everyone knows his job, the coaches have simplified things and the backs are scoring some nice tries.”

Evans, 24, a Welsh speaker from Carmarthen, will be going back almost to his roots tomorrow night when the Dragons face the Scarlets at Parc y Scarlets in a huge Magners League Welsh derby.

“I go back to see my parents and no doubt I’ll get some banter tomorrow,” he said. “The Scarlets’ confidence will be sky high after they won at London Irish so we’ll have to be on our toes for the first 20 minutes or the game will be gone then,” he said.

“The key is to stop their go forward and their snowball effect. Their scrum was really good last week and it’ll be up to us to front up to the challenge.

“The Scarlets are our main competitors, we are the ones with smaller squads than the Ospreys and the Blues and it’s been difficult for us with all the injuries, we’ve been the more unlucky.

“It will be up to us to put 80 minutes together not the odd 20 or so. We were happy with 60 minutes against Glasgow and had we taken all our chances we could have scored six or seven tries.

“We are a few points ahead of the Scarlets in the table and we’ve got to try to keep building and put more pressure on them. A lot will depend on the weather, but it should be enjoyable. It’s a massive game.”