TIGHTHEAD Lloyd Fairbrother has apologised for the red card that cost the Dragons dearly in their agonising derby defeat at Cardiff Blues – and has denied aiming a spit towards the Arms Park crowd as he left the pitch.

The prop was dismissed in the 31st minute of the Guinness PRO14 fixture in the capital by Irish referee Frank Murphy.

Fairbrother caught opposite number Dillon Lewis on the head with his elbow as he cleared out a ruck five metres from the Blues' line.

Murphy watched the incident back on the big screen before dismissing the Cornishman, who gave the former Ireland A scrum-half a thumbs-up before heading to the sideline.

The prop then spat on the ground in the direction of the South Terrace, prompting some complaints on social media.

In a post on Twitter, Fairbrother denied accusations that he aimed a spit at fans and praised the efforts of his teammates, who battled to be level at 16-16 only to suffer a defeat to Gareth Anscombe’s penalty with the last kick.

"I didn’t' intentionally aim for anyone's head, I accidentally clipped him as he's getting rolled out of the ruck,” wrote Fairbrother.

"However, I take responsibility for it and have apologised and shook hands with the player after [the game].

"Secondly, I didn't and would never spit at anyone in the crowd. I take my mouthguard out and spit on the floor in front of me and clear my nose as I am leaving the pitch.

"Finally, I want to apologise with everything I have to the fans, players and all involved. I have let all of you down with the red and will take what comes with it.

"The team put a massive shift in with 14 and can be so proud of that. Sorry all.

"Congratulations to Cardiff on your win."

The Dragons are now set to be without Fairbrother, as well as injured props Leon Brown and Brok Harris, for the derbies with the Ospreys and Scarlets.

The tighthead has established himself in the matchday 23 over the past two seasons but now faces the prospect of having to battle his way back up the pecking order.