Hughes rejoins Dragons on loan

By Mark Stevens

Exeter Chiefs centre Adam Hughes is heading back to former club Newport-Gwent Dragons on a short-term loan deal.

The 25-year-old back, who spent four years with his hometown club prior to moving to Devon, made nine appearances for the Chiefs last season, scoring four tries in the process.

Remarking on the move, Chiefs head coach Rob Baxter said: "Adam is needing game time. He is getting on top of the injuries he had last season, but at the moment our A League programme is a little way off, so the opportunity to play with Newport has come up.

“If you look at our options around the midfield at the moment – Hilly (Sam Hill) has gone very well for a while for us, Ian Whitten is playing very well, we have now got Henry Slade back in the mix and Michele (Campagnaro) is with us now. Max Bodilly has gone particularly well for us in pre-season, so we do have options there.

“Because there aren’t A League games going on at the moment, we need to make sure that, if the opportunity comes along, the players can get some rugby.

“You want a strong squad with good numbers, but you also want as many guys ready, up and running and playing rugby as possible.

“It is an on-going battle for a rugby club, so at this stage it fits well for us, Adam and Newport.”

A former Wales under-20 international, Hughes made more than 70 appearances for Newport before signing for the Chiefs.

And while he has found first team opportunities hard to come by in Devon, Baxter insists that the player does still have a future at the club – providing he is willing to fight for his place.

“Every player with us has a potential future with us. For some guys it is a quick and easy decision – they are in the first team and playing very well,” he revealed. “Others, like Hilly and Jack Yeandle, are improving and we have recently extended their contracts.

“Other guys outside the 23 are coming to the end of their contracts and it is up to them to prove their worth and fight for a contract. That is the way of the world and Adam probably fits into that bracket.

“The ball is in his court. As a player here, you have got all the opportunities to show that you should stay here, and that is what Adam has got.”