THE end of the Celtic Cup sees a raft of Dragons players dropping down to the Principality Premiership this weekend.

The Dragons A team finished their campaign with a record of five wins and a solitary victory, against Connacht Eagles, in the new development tournament and now have a break until facing Hong Kong in Ebbw Vale at the end of the month.

That means plenty of players have been sent out to Gwent clubs for game time, although Ebbw keep things settled for their mouthwatering televised clash against Pontypridd at Sardis Road (kick-off 5.15pm).

The Steelmen are seven from seven and stick with what has got them to the head of the table with replacement fly-half Jacob Botica, no stranger to the Premiership after earning a move thanks to his exploits with RGC, the sole Dragon to drop down.

Seventh-placed Newport are also bolstered by a regional player, albeit one who didn't feature in the Celtic Cup, for their clash with Bridgend at Rodney Parade.

South African lock Rynard Landman started the season in black and amber to earn a Dragons recall but after an elbow injury is back down the pecking order.

He starts against the Ravens, Newport's first Saturday home game of the season, with head coach Craig Warlow making just one other change to his XV from the excellent win at RGC with Josh Skinner coming in at blindside.

The Black and Ambers are still in touch with those setting the pace in the Premiership, but also aren't too comfortable from those battling the drop.

Two Gwent teams that are definitely in the relegation dogfight are Cross Keys and Bedwas, who clash at Pandy Park tomorrow afternoon.

The Keys started the campaign promisingly but have lost four on the spin, three of which could and perhaps should have been wins.

Last week they were beaten 22-7 at Ebbw Vale and head coach Morgan Stoddart makes several changes with Dan Babos back from Dragons A duty at scrum-half, Canadian full-back Will Kelly making his debut after Celtic Cup duty and Rory Budina coming in to face his old side.

Bedwas are boosted by the return of favourites James Thomas and George Gasson from the Dragons in the back row and wing respectively while Tom Hoppe is back in midfield.

The 19-year-old Dragons academy centre has returned from a spell playing club rugby in Waikato, New Zealand and played in the Celtic Cup last week.

Bargoed are also scrapping at the wrong end of the table but are moved into the relegation play-off spot last week thanks to an excellent home win against Llanelli.

As a result they make just one change to their XV – Matt Billett coming in on the wing – but the Bulls boast Dragons tighthead Dan Suter, like Hoppe fresh from club rugby in New Zealand, on the bench along with Wales Under-20s flanker Ben Fry after his Dragons A commitments.

Ebbw Vale (at Pontypridd): D Haymond, S Thomas, C Meyer, D Franchi, T Fricker, R Jones, D Jones, J Harries, R Francis, R Sevenoaks, K Parker, L Randall, R Clarke, R Kynes (captain), L Young. Reps: J Franchi, R Jones, C Hicks, C Regan, O Young, S Ireland, J Botica, P King.

Newport (v Bridgend): D Richards, J Morris, C Smith, T Pascoe, E Frewen, M O'Brien, T Lucas, L Smout, W Evans, G Harris, R Landman, J Bartlett, J Skinner, K Tayler, J Reid. Reps: H Palmer, D Preece, T Piper, D Partridge, M Reed, R Jenkins, R James, G O'Driscoll.

Cross Keys (v Bedwas): W Kelly, R Budina, L Andrews, S Majkic, J Goodchild, J Tovey, D Babos, R Bevington, C Vaughan, R Cornock, D Welch (captain), T Lampard, I Duffy, J Thomas, G Price. Reps: Z Hewlett, T Hansen, S Evans, T James, J Carlin, D Williams, O Leonard, I Newbury.

Bedwas (at Cross Keys): J Scrives, K Teear-Bourge, T Hoppe, L Bowden, G Gasson, D McIntosh, T Rowlands, B Toms, A Rees (captain), R Hutcherson, G Allen, C Hudd, J Richards, N Hudd, J Thomas. Reps: S Cochrane, D Rogers, C Budgen, L Beer, S Parry, R Harries, M Callow, J Chilcott.

Bargoed (v Aberavon): J Hallett, M Billett, B Nightingale, D Humphries, A Norton, J Prosser, J Leadbeater, J Lavender, R Buckley, A Gardner-Key, L Blacker, A Gibson, L Johnson, G Rogers, A Powell. Reps: M Bancroft, J Purcell, J Howells, C Davies, B Fry, D Suter, L Lippiett, R Morgan.