The 27-year-old played for the English club for two seasons before moving to Newport in 2018 and so has witnessed their rise up the ranks.

“We talk about experiences and a quarter-final against one of the best English sides at the moment is definitely one. It is going to be a massive experience for the whole squad,” he told the Dragons website.

“To be fair to Bristol, they are building a great team and you can see that with the success they have had recently.

“It’s a game we will really look forward to playing and challenging ourselves against one of the best. At the end of the day, though, it is 15 against 15, so we will be going into it to win. We never go into a game defeated already and we are quite confident. It will be interesting to go back.”

Dragons finished their Guinness PRO14 campaign with a 41-20 home loss to Welsh rivals Scarlets, which followed a 20-20 draw at Ospreys, but after almost six months without rugby Williams was just happy to be playing again.

“It’s good to be back,” he said. “It has been a long layoff and it’s nice to get out on the field. I was just disappointed with the result [on Saturday].

“We had spoken about the long-term plan before these games and the youngsters have had some valuable experiences. We are building and now we have Bristol, and that is massive for us.”

Dragons scrum half Rhodri Williams is relishing his return to Ashton Gate for his side’s European Rugby Challenge Cup quarter-final at Bristol Bears on September 18.