NEWPORT Gwent Dragons head coach Kingsley Jones believes their breakdown prowess was the key to them recording a fourth successive Rodney Parade win.

The Dragons ran out 27-19 victors against Edinburgh on Sunday to climb to ninth in the Guinness Pro12 after first half tries by full-back Carl Meyer, prop Sam Hobbs and fly-half Angus O'Brien.

They backed up their successes against Brive, Connacht and the Scarlets and it was their tenacity at the tackle area when under the pump in the second half that pleased Jones, with openside Ollie Griffiths to the fore with an all-action display.

"The last person that we wanted to lose was Matthew Screech, and we lost Matthew Screech," said the head coach, who was without locks Cory Hill (Wales duty) and Rynard Landman (paternity leave).

"Our lineout leader was gone and we lost six lineouts through having James Thomas and Crosswell in the second row. To be honest they are both flankers, even if I like to have Crosswell at lock.

"But we dealt with it, didn't capitulate and our breakdown kept us in the game. We were outstanding with turnover after turnover."

The Dragons will now try to end their long wait for a league away victory when they take on Leinster at the Royal Dublin Society on Saturday evening.

They haven't triumphed on the road since beating Treviso in March, 2015 but a stunning win in the Irish capital a month before that triumph gives Jones reason to believe.

"It's a tough league and Leinster is a hard place to go but we have gone there and won before," he said. "I told the players after the Edinburgh game that we've got everything to gain and nothing to lose out there.

"It's the first time we've had back-to-back wins for quite a while, can it be the first time we win away in quite a while?

"Leinster will have a few players back (from Ireland duty) and are a very good team, it's a challenge for us but one we are looking forward to. We have nothing to lose, people won't be betting on us winning there."