NICK CROSSWELL will captain Newport Gwent Dragons as they attempt to avoid a European Rugby Challenge Cup banana skin in Russia tomorrow afternoon.

The Dragons will bid to follow up their stunning 37-16, bonus-point win against Brive when they take on Enisei in Krasnodar (kick-off 1pm).

Head coach Kingsley Jones makes nine personnel changes to his XV with starts given to lock Crosswell, who skippers the side in the absence of Lewis Evans, wing Pat Howard, centres Sam Beard and Jack Dixon, fly-half Angus O’Brien, props Phil Price and Lloyd Fairbrother, openside Nic Cudd and number eight Harri Keddie.

Adam Warren moves from midfield to the wing while former Wales scrum-half Tavis Knoyle is set for his Dragons debut off the bench.

The Russian side have lost just one home game – to Connacht – and last week added Worcester to their scalps of Newcastle and Brive.

They are forced into one change to the XV that beat the Warriors with influential Bears centre Dmitri Gerasimov missing out after being cited for a dangerous tackle in Moscow.

Enisei field nine Russia internationals - including prolific fly-half Yuri Kushnarev - while they are captained by Latvia lock Uldis Saulite. He packs down next to Moldovan international Maxim Gargalic, who returned from a two-year doping ban in the summer.

They include Georgia centre David Kacharava, who has played in two World Cups and won 95 caps, Ukraine flanker Vitalii Orlov, Georgia A flanker Mikheil Gachechiladze and New Zealander Thomas Halse, who played for London Irish last season.

Enisei: R Gaisin, I Kurashov, D Kacharava, T Halse, D Simplikevich, I Kushnarev, A Shcherban, A Polivalov, S Selskii, I Zykov, U Saulite (captain), M Gargalic, M Gachechiladze, V Orlov, A Rudoi. Replacements: S Magomedov, V Morozov, E Pronenko, T Ghadgiev, J Baranovs, K Uzunov, A Mikhaltsov, V L Krasylnyk. 

Dragons: C Meyer, P Howard, S Beard, J Dixon, A Warren, A O’Brien, C Davies, P Price, R Buckley, L Fairbrother, N Crosswell (captain), R Landman, J Thomas, N Cudd, H Keddie. Replacements: D Harris, T Davies, C Mitchell, M Screech, C Hill, T Knoyle, GR Jones, A Hewitt.

Referee: Vlad Iordachescu (Romania)​