DEAN Ryan believes he can develop an environment that helps more Dragons become Wales stars at the next World Cup.

Flankers Aaron Wainwright and Ross Moriarty and hooker Elliot Dee are currently on international duty in Japan while lock Cory Hill was selected in the original squad only to suffer injury anguish.

Prop Leon Brown was in Wales' training squad and played against Ireland this summer while fly-half Sam Davies, wing Ashton Hewitt, centre Tyler Morgan and flanker Ollie Griffiths have all had call-ups in recent seasons.

Ryan, who took over at Rodney Parade this summer, believes there are plenty of Dragons capable of being in Wayne Pivac's squad in the next World Cup cycle.

"There are loads of players who have surprised me and one of the motivations is to create an environment where they can grow," said the director of rugby, who won four caps for England.

"There are some here that can play international rugby and there are some that can play at the highest level of domestic rugby.

"I just don't think that sometimes they have been given the foundation to do that, and if you play this sport you just want to get a chance to show what your best is.

"If we get that foundation better then we will surprise with the ability that we have in the room.

"There are players that I would love to get back in the Wales set-up because they are capable of playing international rugby. I want the Dragons to be a foundation that they can move forward from."

A successful Dragons would lead to greater representation in Pivac's squad with fly-half Davies hoping to profit from a change of management.

READ MORE: Davies - I want to stamp my authority on Dragons

Ryan is surprised that the 25-year-old, who swapped the Ospreys for Rodney Parade in the summer, hasn't played Test rugby since winning his eighth cap against Samoa in 2017.

"I've been blown away by how smart Sam is," said the director of rugby. "I struggle to know why he is not in the international squad and I see it as my responsibility to create an environment to keep him getting better, because he sees the game faster than I do.

"I think that I can help him in terms of how to manage other people and get the best out of them, but ultimately he has so much to offer Wales and the game."

While plenty of Dragons are hoping to force their way into the international squad, Wainwright has established himself.

The flanker made his professional debut against Cardiff Blues in October 2017, won his first cap the following summer and on Sunday produced a remarkable performance when starting at blindside in the World Cup win against Australia.

"We are proud of all of the boys in that Wales camp but Aaron was exceptional last weekend and it's brilliant to see," said backs coach Barry Maddocks.

"We had to play him (in 2017) because of several injuries in the back row and it was credit to him that he grasped that opportunity with both hands.

"Aaron has played exceptionally well for the Dragons and has gone to another level over the last couple of months. He has pushed on with Wales and that is brilliant for us.

"He is an exceptional individual and is a really good athlete, but he is mild-mannered and a fantastic in the group."