Owen rounded off a great break by Hal Luscombe to grab his first try with the game only a few minutes old as the Dragons roared into a 20 point lead.

Full back Percy Montgomery, who helped himself to 23 points on the night, opened the scoring with a first minute penalty and then added a second after converting Owen’s first try.

Then, for good measure, the ex-Springbok ran in a try of his own which he also converted. That made it 20 points in 17 minutes for the Welsh side and it looked as though the Borders were going to be routed.

But prop Bruce Douglas led a spirited home revival and by half-time things were looking a little better for the Scots. It was Douglas who grabbed the first try of the night for the Borders and full back Gareth Morton added the conversion and a 30 metre penalty to halve the deficit before the break.

But the Dragons were back in control at the start of the second half and Montgomery’s third penalty edged his side back into a 13 point lead. The Borders responded with their second try, as Morton bagged the touchdown as he followed a Clark Laidlaw chip ahead, and all of a sudden the gap was only eight points.

Owen’s second try of the night came at a vital time as he used all his power to charge over and a fourth penalty from Montgomery made victory secure. Then replacement Sione Tuipulotu’s injury time try provided the perfect end as the Dragons also picked up a bonus point to further enhance their league position.