It was an early start - 1.30pm - but nobody told the Dragons. Within half an hour they were 31-3 down and there was no resurrection possible from there. To lose so emphatically at home dents not only their Heineken prospects but also their pride. The Welsh do not take kindly to Premiership sides popping down the M4 and delivering such a thrashing.
London Irish did not really hold sway up front, which is supposed to be the basis of any victory. They did not have to; their backs were always fleet of foot and thought against a surprisingly fragile defence.
The orchestrator of this thumping victory was inevitably Mike Catt, who was playing at outside-half for the Irish. He pulled all the strings in an extraordinary first half. I doubt whether, even in his long career, he has produced such a flawless half of rugby.
There was magic in his boots. Every time he kicked London Irish made major inroads into the Dragons' territory. On one occasion he appeared to mesmerise their full-back, Kevin Morgan. The ball had already travelled fully 75 yards when Morgan opted to leave it alone to allow his side the throw-in. But the ball - no doubt still under Catt's instruction - refused to trickle into touch. Eventually Morgan had to intervene and concede the line-out a yard from his own line.
Or Catt kicked with unerring touch and accuracy across the field to his wingers, a ploy that led to London Irish's fourth try. Or, he timed his run to perfection to accept the shrewd flick from Tonga Lea'aetoa for the second try. He was left with 25 yards to the line. No one could catch the 36-year-old.
Nor was he coasting in defence. When the Dragons, in a state of some shock at the scoreboard, tried to rally themselves and the stunned spectators, Catt was equally prominent, doing more than his fair share of tackling.
No wonder we have heard no noises from him about retirement from international rugby. He has seldom looked stronger - even though he left the field after 55 minutes. By then the game was won.
It may be that he is at the peak of his fitness after England's World Cup campaign. We may be seeing the benefits of all that work in August and September. Whether Catt and his World Cup colleagues will appear quite so fresh in February and March is a different matter. Perhaps that is why London Irish withdrew him once the match was sewn up. There are tougher battles ahead.
Both teams had arrived at Rodney Parade in good heart, London Irish having routinely walloped Treviso in the first round of the competition. Meanwhile, the Dragons had returned from Perpignan, not with a victory, but a bonus point that the optimists felt might be invaluable in the final reckoning. After this game it seems an irrelevance.
From the moment Ceri Sweeney's penalty attempt hit a post and bounced back into play the Irish snatched every chance. First Tomas de Vedia made the most of a straightforward overlap on the right wing. His second try was more dependent upon another nightmarish error from Morgan, who allowed Delon Armitage's kick to slip from his grasp.
In quick succession Catt scored his try and conjured another with that cross-kick, which required a bit more work. De Vedia had to snatch it, transfer the ball to Peter Hewat before Armitage bull-dozed over the line. This trio all had excellent games. Hewat's place-kicking was flawless; Armitage revealed pace and vision throughout.
The Dragons could not match the inventiveness of the Irish back line. Their two tries, which never threatened to change the course of the game, both came from prolonged forward pressure and referrals to the TV referee.
'We were taught a lesson in finishing and a lesson in power,' said 'a hugely disappointed' Paul Turner, the Dragons' coach.
Rodney Parade 6,132
DRAGONS Morgan; Wyatt (Emerick 57), Davies, Smith, Mustoe; Sweeney (A Thomas 70), Evans (Williams 59); Black, Jones (Daly 70), R Thomas (Gustafson 70), Charteris, Owen (Hall 75), Ringer (Bearman 59), Parks, Charvis (capt)
Tries Owen, Jones Cons Sweeney 2 Pen Sweeney
LONDON IRISH Hewat (Ojo 80); De Vedia, D Armitage, Mapusua, Tagicakibau; Catt (Hodgson 55), Richards (S Armitage 70); Murphy, Paice (Coetzee 70), Lea'aetoa (Skuse 50), Kennedy (Hudson 79), Casey (capt), Roche, Danaher, Leguizamon (Thorpe 65)
Tries De Vedia 2, Catt, D Armitage 2, Kennedy Cons Hewat 6 Pen Hewat
Referee C Berdos (France)
