THERE’S no doubt that it’s been a disappointing start to the season for Newport Gwent Dragons but we are staying positive and having belief is a massive factor in professional sport.

The Ospreys were said to be in a horrendous position in pre-season but have won six out of six in the Guinness Pro12. That’s down to a winning habit and things have snowballed for them as a result.

The night is darkest before the dawn and having a positive mental attitude and supportive environment is key to creating good performances, then the results will look after themselves.

It was another poor display up in Edinburgh, which was frustrating because preparation had gone very well with simple things identified as the main issues for our loss at the Scarlets.

Exiting from your own half is a major part of the game and playing more rugby in the opposition territory is key to success as it places pressure on them; errors in your own half cost points.

It isn’t rocket science.

It’s about having the ability to execute individual skills and stick to a strategy that suits the team. As it was said on a level three coaching course that I went on with Rob Sidoli and Jevon Groves, recognising your strengths is a fundamental part of the coaching process.

By no means are we at panic stations as this season could have been so different with fewer injuries and were it not for the Irish luck (and resilience) in Connacht and moments of genius by the Ospreys’ Rhys Webb.

As a team we have addressed the issues that are hurting us and now with the addition of Shaun Connor the workload can be spread better for our coaches, giving even more attention to detail when looking at our kicking game and attacking shapes.

Next up is Stade Francais and the trip to Paris is something that everyone wants to be a part of because it will be amazing to play in what looks a stunning stadium.

Seeing new cities is fantastic but, contrary to belief, it is certainly not a holiday and we get very little time to explore the places we visit.

Saying that, this trip may not have been possible for me because of the backlog at the Passport Office. Luckily it has been resolved, even if it was left late, because I didn’t fancy hiding in the back of kitman Jeremy Vizard’s van on the Eurostar!

Having a game in France certainly makes a difference to the weekly routine, one that could soon involve plenty of trips for a ‘cheeky’ Nando’s at Newport Retail Park.

I’m sure there will be plenty of visits for myself, Jason Tovey and Ashley Smith along with Newport RFC locals Adam Frampton and Will Evans, talking lineouts no doubt!

But while we put plenty of hours into preparing to play rugby, I believe it’s massively important to have interests outside of sport.

Having studied for a university degree, coached Dragons age-grade teams for six years and participated in a few college courses, I wanted to do something that had a ‘real job’ feel.

An old school friend of mine, Richard Davenport, shares my passion for youth development so we launched LIFE Education Wales.

The aim is to teach essential life skills, things that are often overlooked in secondary education such as career planning and money management. A pilot scheme has been set up at St Joseph’s High, our old school, and hopefully in time it will spread out to plenty of others in the area.

And yesterday I was lucky enough to head down to the school with Tovey to help out with some team-building exercises with Year 11 as part of their Mission Week.

Fingers crossed that I will continue to have the welcome problem of having to balance playing professional rugby with educating the next generation.