A LOT has changed since James Thomas turned out for Newport Gwent Dragons against Ulster at a packed Ravenhill in November, writes Chris Kirwan.

The 24-year-old from Blackwood made his first Guinness Pro12 start in the 23-6 defeat in Belfast. He was a novice but put in an impressive display as a makeshift lock, showing energy and an appetite for graft.

He has been a regular ever since and Thomas, who this time last year was catching the eye with Bedwas in the Principality Premiership, is an increasingly influential figure given that the Dragons are without Taulupe Faletau (Wales duty) and Lewis Evans (wrist injury) in the back row.

"At the start I was more worried about making mistakes rather than doing something good," he admitted.

"Now after a loss I think that there was more I could have done whereas before I would have thought that it wasn't too bad as long as I didn't make a mistake.

"I am taking a lot more responsibility and feel that I am contributing to the wins so I am also contributing to the losses."

There has been a lot of soul-searching at the Dragons' Ystrad Mynach training base this week after the shock 23-17 defeat to bottom club Zebre last weekend.

Thomas, who should overcome a shoulder bump to line up at Rodney Parade, says that the pack need to up their game against a strong Ulster unit despite showing more signs of their progress in the tight game in Parma.

"We scored two driving lineout tries and did well against their strong scrum, that was positive but around the park we have to do a lot more work to help out our backs," he said.

"We need to improve our breakdown work and when we've got the ball we have got to work harder to get around the corner to give the backs more width."

Ulster head to Newport without back row forward Roger Wilson, who has been banned for one week for a punch against the Scarlets, and centre Luke Marshall, who has been handed a five-week suspension for kicking.

The Irish province are on a hot streak of form and have the carrot of a Ravenhill final to play for but coach Neil Doak is not taking the Dragons lightly.

"They're a side that if you sit back and let them dictate, they're pretty efficient and they can cause you problems," he said.

"It's not an easy place and we have frequently battled over there so we know that we can't let them get a foothold in the game," stated Doak.