I think Exeter Chiefs get a bit of a raw deal. As a top 6 side who regularly cause problems
for the top 3 (as seen by their win away at the Stoop a few weeks ago), they
remain attached to the 'underdog' tag in most matches and any victories against
decent opposition are greeted with surprise and an "Oh, the opposition
must have forgotten to show up".
They get labelled a team of grafters which, to an extent, is true given
that they have no real superstars amongst their ranks – with the force of
nature Naquilevuki only seeming to be a part-timer – and yet they're the 2nd
highest try scorers in the league. More
than the highly-proclaimed Gloucester and Harlequins sides. They deserve credit for being an
entertaining, effective all-round side, but they seldom get it. And I'm as bad as anyone else – I had them
down for a narrow defeat at Wasps on Sunday despite the fact that Wasps had
lost their last 6 matches in all competitions and Exeter had won their previous
three against the Londoners. In reality,
if I'd ignored the number of international caps and lists of players with
"Wow" factor and focussed on results and teamwork, this one was
always Exeter's for the taking.
But it was the London side who had the better of the opening
exchanges, with Elliot Daly converting a monster penalty attempt after Stephen
Jones fluffed an opening effort wide of the mark, before Exeter hit back
swiftly with some style. They thought
initially they had got a try through veteran number 8 Richard Baxter following
a superb break from in-form fly half Gareth Steenson, but the score was ruled out and the Chiefs
had to settle for a Steenson 3 pointer instead.
They didn't have to wait long though before crossing the Wasps line
though, as the Wasps defence began to look as water tight as a sieve. Firstly, hooker Jack Yeandle burrowed over in
the left hand corner following a terrific gallop down the right by lock Damian
Welch before, five minutes later, winger Jack Nowell waltzed in untouched
following a slick, but badly defended, lineout move.
The Chiefs were utterly rampant at this point, with James
Scaysbrook outstanding in the physical exchanges, and the home side were
looking shell shocked – the back row of Ashley Johnson, James Haskell and Billy
Vunipola were sliding off tackles on an alarmingly regular basis and were being
outperformed in the speed and aggression departments. Steenson knocked over another penalty and the
game that was supposed to be a tight affair was in danger of becoming a rout –
the hosts needed something special to pull themselves back into it. Luckily for Wasps, they don't exactly have a
shortage of X-Factor out wide, and Christian Wade showed off his finishing
abilities with a scything break through the Chiefs midfield before stepping the
cover to touchdown under the posts. It
pulled the deficit back to 10 points at the turnaround, but Wasps had to find a
way to start physically matching the speed and precision of the Exeter pack, as
well as close up some of the gaping holes in their defence.
Unfortunately, the hosts did exactly the opposite upon the
resumption of play. After conceding soft
yardage to Dean Mumm and Scaysbrook, the magnificent Welch – a menace with the
ball in hand all afternoon – strode through an abysmal attempt at a tackle from
Tim Swainston before powering through Daly on the way to an excellent
individual score. It was a key moment as
you could feel the belief drop out of the players and supporters of the home
side and even when Southwell went over following quick hands from Daly whilst
Scaysbrook was in the sin bin, there was no real expectation that it would lead
to a significant come back. Exeter just
seemed better in all the key areas – dominant in the set piece, overpowering at
the breakdown, inventive in attack and rock solid in defence. They grabbed their bonus point score through
Haydn Thomas, who darted over after spotting Haskell out of position following
another powerful surge from the Chiefs pack, before Steenson hammered the nail
in the coffin of Wasps' Heineken Cup hopes with a late penalty. There was still time for Tom Varndell, who
had certainly not disgraced himself, to grab a consolation score on his 100th
game for the Londoners after an initial break from scrum half Charlie Davies,
with the winger cruising past the cover defence in another frightening display
of speed.
Too little, too late for Wasps though. An end-of-season collapse should not detract
from an otherwise promising recovery, considering where they were last year,
but it is the Chiefs who should take all the credit. Quiet and unassuming, they have gone about
their business in an effective way and have, in all likelihood, ensured
Heineken Cup rugby will once again be played at Sandy Park. They're no flash in the pan, but they're
flasher than we give them credit for.
What else was happening across England's green and pleasant
(in parts) land at the weekend?
Bath 27 – 26 Leicester
Tigers: Bath kept their Heineken Cup
hopes alive with a great 1 point win following a dominant 2nd half performance
at the Rec. Despite stunning tries from
Tom Croft and Ben Youngs, the hosts prevailed through Simon Taylor, Semese Rokoduguni,
Horacio Agulla and the exceptional Francois Louw in a result that means the
Tigers still have to win in the next round to secure a home semi final.
Gloucester 28 – 23 Saracens: Gloucester secured themselves a Heineken
Cup spot with a great home win over the league leaders. A double from lightening wing Jonny May and a
superb solo effort from the returning Ben Morgan was enough to topple the
visitors, who had Joel Tomkins to thank for both of their tries.
London Irish 47 – 28 London
Welsh: The men in green won the
battle of the Exiles with a comprehensive home victory. Despite tries for Welsh from Nick Scott, Seb
Stegmann and Greg Bateman, the hosts were rampant, clocking up 5 pointers
through Guy Armitage (2), Halani 'Aulika (2), Chris Hala'ufia, Sailosi Tagicakibau
and Matt Garvey. On a side not, Aulika
has to be the best try scoring prop in the world at the moment.
Worcester Warriors 26
– 42 Harlequins: Harlequins pulled away with a convincing win after a
stubborn performance from the Warriors at Sixways, to confirm the reigning
champions' place in the playoffs this year.
The Warriors scored two tries through Chris Pennell and Alex Grove, but
were undone by the visitors who racked up tries from Nick Evans (2), Tom
Williams, Danny Care (2) and Mike Brown.
Northampton Saints 47
– 7 Sale Sharks: The Saints
administered a 7 try thrashing to the recovering Sale Sharks as they confirmed
their place in the playoff spots this year along with Saracens, Leicester and
Harlequins. The hosts were rampant and
scored tries through Tom Wood, Lee Dickson, Luther Burrell, Jamie Elliot (2)
and James Wilson (2), whilst the visitors could only get over the try line
once, thanks to a last minute effort from James Gaskell.
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